


My Rhythm and Blues

by TeddysHoney



Series: In Every Lifetime [13]
Category: Glee
Genre: Bands, College!Kurt, Fanboy!Kurt, M/M, Music Festival, New York City, Singer!Blaine, Song fic, Soulmarks, Soulmates, famous!blaine
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-01
Updated: 2021-03-12
Packaged: 2021-03-13 05:14:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 43,644
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29148027
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TeddysHoney/pseuds/TeddysHoney
Summary: Kurt's finally in New York, the city he's dreamed of coming to for so long and the place he should meet his soulmate, according to his mark. After a once-in-a-lifetime concert, he heads to Marie's Crisis for some drinks, and he meets someone whom he's been crushing on for years: Blaine Anderson, lead singer of Warbler Attack. The singer invites him, as a joke, to go on tour with the band, and Kurt takes him up on his offer, sending him off on a whirlwind romance he never thought he'd experience.
Relationships: Blaine Anderson/Kurt Hummel, Elliott "Starchild" Gilbert/Sebastian Smythe, Jeff Sterling/Nick Duval, Past Blaine Anderson/Eli C., Santana Lopez/Brittany S. Pierce
Series: In Every Lifetime [13]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1591516
Comments: 70
Kudos: 27
Collections: KlaineCCValentines2021





	1. Prologue: My End and My Beginning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story was written for the 2021 Klaine Valentine's Day Challenge.

When Kurt and Blaine stepped back out of the room Caphriel had created for them after their return from their last lifetime into the wide, gray space, the other man was waiting for them. He smiled at his favorite infinites but didn’t say anything about what they’d just done. Instead, he nudged the book toward them. “Any idea where you’d like to go next?” he asked.

Blaine looked at Kurt questioningly, holding out a hand for the other man to come closer. “Any ideas?” he mumbled when Kurt was right next to him once more.

“Not exactly,” Kurt told him. “What about you?”

“Music,” Blaine replied dreamily.

“Come again?” Kurt giggled at the blissful look on his soulmate’s face. He’d heard exactly what he’d said, but hearing that one word come out of Blaine’s mouth so lovingly made him want to hear it again.

“Music,” Blaine repeated. “I think I’d like to go on an adventure with lots of music.”

Caphriel lit up. “Well, there are plenty of those to choose from,” he told the infinites. He flipped to that section in the book, turning it toward them. “There are secret soulmate songs, songs to restore hearing, songs to be written, songs to be sung, bands to be lead, musicals to be done.” He chuckled to himself over the little rhyme but looked at the two men before him expectantly. This was almost his favorite part.

Blaine’s eyes lit up, and he turned to Caphriel with a look of excitement. “Did you say there are bands to be led?”

“I did,” the other man confirmed. “There are a few stories in which one of you is in a band.”

“Oh, Kurt!” Blaine hopped up and down for just a moment. “Can we do one of those? Please? I’ve always wanted to be the lead singer in a band, and… It just sounds like a ton of fun!”

Kurt grinned. He was going to say yes. Of course, he was going to say yes. How could he say no to the adorable face that was his soulmates? But he wanted to play a little bit hard to get. He couldn’t just give in immediately to what Blaine wanted without a little bit of fun. “Why?” he asked. “What’s so special about being the lead singer in a band?”

“Kurt! Imagine the lives we could lead! We could go on tour, hit up a new city every night, drink at the best bars, have the best sex, find the most fabulous new kinks, and write songs to sing to each other all the time. Hell, we could be in the band  _ together _ ! Wouldn’t that be awesome? We could sing to each other every night on stage, and every show would be the best night of our lives!”

“Being famous also means no privacy, a ton of paparazzi and cameras in our faces, scandals on the news, and who knows what other types of unpleasantries.”

“Worth it. All worth it if I’m with you,” Blaine told him, smiling wide.

“Are you sure about that?”

“Positive. One hundred percent positive. Can we please try one? Please?”

Kurt gave in, smiling at his soulmate. He leaned in, pressing a tender kiss to his lips. “Of course, we can. I was always going to let you. I just had to play hard to get for a few minutes.”

“No fair!” Blaine complained, mock pouting for a moment. “You’re my soulmate, Kurt. You’re supposed to love me!”

“I do. That’s why I want to see that absolutely adorable pout,” Kurt replied, leaning in to peck his nose.

Caphriel watched them for a few moments, smiling. He loved when the two of them showed up. They were by far the best couple that ever passed through The Unknown, and he delighted in watching them pick a new adventure. He also, sometimes, felt like he was intruding on their privacy, invading the little bit of time they had to love on one another before they took off on a new adventure, but he did his best to be respectful, looking away whenever they chose to share a more passionate moment together.

After a few minutes of them sharing light kisses back and forth, he asked, “Are you ready to start your next adventure?”

Kurt cast a glance at him, pressing his lips together into a tight line. “Could we have a moment?” he asked. “I just want to say a few things to Blaine before we part ways again.”

“Take as much time as you need,” Caphriel reassured them. “There’s no rush.” 

“Thank you,” Kurt told him, taking a few steps away from the podium and taking both of Blaine’s hands in his, drawing him just a bit closer. There were tears in the corners of his eyes. 

“What’s wrong,  _ aking Hari _ ?” Blaine asked, the old nickname slipping out.

“I just feel like our time here is so fleeting,” Kurt told him. “I mean, this is our ending and our beginning, the place we come to say goodbye before our next hello. Sometimes,  _ aking prinsipe,  _ I’m just not quite ready to let you go again.”

Blaine had tears in his eyes as well as he stood on his tiptoes to press a kiss to Kurt’s lips. “We can always stay here longer if you need to. You heard Caphriel. There’s no rush.”

“But staying only delays being apart, and that’s not what I’m looking for,” Kurt told him, sniffling.

“Someday,” Blaine vowed, “someday, I’ll be sure to find you first thing. Even if I have to crawl out of the hospital nursery, I will find you from the first moment and love you every second the way you deserve to be loved. Even in a different lifetime, you’ll always be mine, just like you are in every other. I don’t want to be apart any more than you do, but the finding one another again is always so sweet.”

“You’re the sweetest man alive,” Kurt told him. “I’m so glad you’re my eternal love, my infinite soulmate.”

“You, too,” Blaine answered him, leaning in to peck him again. “You ready to go?”

Kurt nodded. He looked to Caphriel, stepping closer once more. “We’re ready.”

Caphriel smiled at them once again, sad to see them go. “Your story awaits, my friends,” he told them, watching as they disappeared for their next adventure together.


	2. Chapter 1: Drawing Me In

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's song was Invisible String by Taylor Swift.  
> My lyric inspiration:  
> “And isn't it just so pretty to think  
> All along there was some  
> Invisible string  
> Tying you to me?”

Kurt bounced up and down on his toes as he and Brittany stood in line to get into the festival. The line was a mile long, but Kurt couldn’t have been more excited. They were finally here, finally going to the festival he’d been following for the past three years, wishing he could go to. This year, the cards had finally fallen into place, and he was able to be there. 

He glanced down at his wrist where he could just see the edges of his soulmark sticking out over the cuff of his leather gloves. He was finally in New York, the place where he’d been promised to meet his soulmate since the day he’d turned five and the little Statue of Liberty outline had shown up on his wrist. He couldn’t help looking at every man they saw in Central Park as a potential partner, wondering if they were going to be the one he was destined to meet and fall in love with. 

His father had described it to him best a few years before he’d passed away: “Your soulmate is out there, Kurt, destined to be yours because of that little statue on your arm.” He’d just finished telling him that he felt drawn to New York every time someone said the name of the city, and he couldn’t understand why. “It’s like there’s an invisible string tying you to that person. You can’t see it, but you can feel it, and that’s what makes the whole business of soulmates so pretty.”

_I wonder if I’m about to meet the person on the other end of that string…_ Kurt mused to himself.

“Kurt?” Brittany asked, waving her hand in front of his face. “Where did you go? I said your name like a billion times, but you didn’t respond.”

“Sorry,” Kurt apologized, looking at her with a slightly chagrinned look. “What’s up?”

“I was telling you about that girl,” Brittany said, pointing ahead of them to a group of three girls huddled together. One had long black hair, one had long blonde hair, and the other had short brunette hair cut into a bob.

“Which one?” Kurt asked, gently guiding her hand back to her side.

“The one with the black hair,” Brittany told him quietly. “I’ve been staring at her this whole time, and I almost thought she was a statue because I never saw her move. You can be in love with a statue, right?”

Not knowing what to say, Kurt just looked at her in confusion. He loved Brittany. He really, really did. He’d met her on his first day of college walking aimlessly around the lobby of one of the buildings. When he’d asked her what she was looking for, and she’d told him she’d lost her invisible elephant, Teenie, he’d immediately felt the need to take care of her. They’d been friends ever since, and when he’d discovered that she also had a New York soulmark, she was the first person he’d thought of when he realized he was going to be able to attend the festival.

They stood in line for nearly 30 more minutes before they were finally allowed into the concert area where the festival was taking place, and they rushed to the general admission area, eager to get as close to the stage as they could. The festival had promise--a lot of promise, Kurt thought--and was likely going to be one of the best nights of their lives. They wanted to have some of the best seats in the house.

The Legends Festival was the brainchild of Mr. Blaine Anderson, the lead singer for a group called Warbler Attack. They were a relatively new group, had been on the scene for just over six years after forming at their college, Dalton Academy. They were still up and coming and hadn’t gotten very big yet, but Kurt had discovered them early on and had been enamored with the lead singer, Blaine, from the very start. Perhaps some would even call him obsessed. He grinned when he thought of the photos back in his hotel room, artistic shots he’d put together digitally on his laptop and printed. He loved them, and he hoped no one else would ever find out about them. That would be incredibly embarrassing.

Kurt had been dreaming of going to The Legends Festival ever since Blaine had put it together three years prior. He got together artists of all sizes--some new names, some older names, some big names--and got them all to sing together on an outdoor stage at the end of October. It was like heaven for anyone who liked music that wasn’t traditionally played on the pop or country radio stations, but Kurt was really only there for one thing: Warbler Attack. 

Sure, the other members of the band were cute. There was Elliot the drummer, Eli the bassist, Jeff the guitarist, Nick the other guitarist and back-up vocalist, and Sebastian on keyboard. Blaine, though, Blaine was the dream. He wore leather, played guitar, had the most perfect mop of curly hair Kurt had ever seen, wore stage liner, and had a voice that sounded like smooth, melted caramel. From the first moment Kurt had heard him sing, he was in love. His voice made him feel calm and connected to a part of his soul he’d never known existed. He never wanted that feeling to stop.

Luckily, the general admittance area on the grass wasn’t too full yet, and Kurt and Brittany were able to find a good place to stand only a few feet from the stage. They pressed in as close as they could to the others already there, determined not to have anyone move between them and the stage and take their spot. There was a man from a local bar, Marie’s Crisis, on stage, leading the group through some Disney and Broadway sing-a-long numbers while everyone waited for the ticket lines to close and the first set to begin.

“Kurt, look!” Brittany said, tugging at his shirt again and pointing. There, not too far away from them, was the dark-haired girl Brittany had seen in line. She was standing with her friends, singing along with the man at the piano, her eyes squeezed tight.

Looking past his friend, Kurt watched the other girl for a moment. Then, he looked back at Brittany. There was a look of longing in her eyes as if some part of her needed to be closer to the girl. “Do you want to scoot over?” he asked in her ear.

She nodded.

“Go. I’m right behind you.” 

They relocated and turned their attention back to the stage. It took almost 40 minutes before Blaine appeared on stage and everyone started cheering and whistling. Kurt even heard a few catcalls thrown the other man’s way, and for some reason he couldn’t name, that bothered him. Yes, Blaine was beautiful, and he knew that others would appreciate looking at him. But he couldn’t put a finger on exactly _why_ he was suddenly very uncomfortable with the attention being paid to him.

“How’s everyone doing this evening?” Blaine asked the crowd and was met by another round of whistles and cheers. “That’s great. I love being in New York in the fall. It’s a great time of year, and Central Park is just beautiful now, don’t you think?” He paused for the crowd’s reaction. “I’m so glad all of you could join me and my friends here for an evening of music and fun. I truly appreciate it; we couldn’t keep singing and putting out music if it wasn’t for people like you. I don’t want to keep you guys waiting any longer, so I’m going to go ahead and introduce our first guest. All the way from L.A. and striking out on a solo career, I want you to welcome a beautiful lady I’ve known for a long time: Miss Marley Rose!”

A young, thin woman took the stage, standing beside Blaine with a giant smile on her face. “Hi, Blaine!” she said softly before turning to wave at the crowd. “Hi, everybody.”

“I’m so glad you could join us, Marley,” Blaine said, grinning. “I was just thinking the other day about how we met. It was pretty wild, wasn’t it?”

“Yeah. I was a fangirl at one of your shows,” Marley replied. “I came up to you afterward, determined I was going to get a picture with you.”

“Do you remember the shirt you were wearing that day?” Blaine asked her, his smile positively radiant even under the bright spotlights on the stage.

“I do,” Marley agreed. “I had on a shirt I’d made that said, ‘Future Mrs. Anderson’.”

“And, do you remember what I told you?”

Marley blushed lightly. “That you were gay,” she answered softly.

“That’s right!” Blaine crowed, grinning at the crowd. “But we still became good friends that day anyway, because this girl is more than just some big dreams of marrying a celebrity.” He turned back to the crowd. “Marley has an amazing voice, and the first time I heard her sing, I was blown away. I’m so glad she could join us tonight to present you with the debut performance of her first single, _Invisible String_!”

The crowd cheered wildly, and Blaine backed off the stage as the rear lights went down and the spotlight focused in on Marley.

That was how they spent the next several hours. Blaine would come out to check on everyone and raz the crowd back up after each performer. He’d introduce the next performer, complete with a story about how he knew them and why he thought they were so wonderful. He was very charismatic, clearly born to be on the stage, doing exactly what he was doing.

_Holy hot damn,_ Kurt thought as he watched the man he’d been pining over on the stage. _He’s much hotter up close, and I’m not even that close to him. I mean, have you seen his smile? Those eyes? He’s positively glowing! What I wouldn’t give for just a few minutes to chat with him, tell him how much he’s inspired me and kept me going while I’ve been working my way through college toward an impossible dream._

A few sets in, Kurt noticed that Brittany had drifted away from him. She hadn’t gone too far; that was nearly impossible with this crowd all packed onto the lawn in front of the stage like sardines in a can, but she’d migrated closer to the skinny girl with long, dark hair. The two of them seemed to be dancing together, smiling and laughing. Kurt could see that the dark-haired girl’s friends were watching Brittany with curious eyes, but they didn’t seem too mad about her encroaching on her space, so he didn’t interfere. Instead, he kept his eyes on the stage, bopping and singing along as group after group got up to do their set. He just kept hoping for another glimpse of Blaine Anderson, the man he was really there for that night.

Finally, at nearly 9 p.m., when the last song of the set was over, Blaine didn’t come bounding back out on stage. Instead, the lead singer of the final band, Grilled Cheesus, stayed on stage while the rest of his group exited. “Who’s having a good time?” the man asked, grinning when he got screams in return. Behind him, the stage crew was already in the process of moving equipment around, shifting the Grilled Cheesus drumkit off stage and positioning the one with the words “Warbler Attack” clearly painted on the front.

Kurt’s heart skipped a bit in his chest, and he felt his pulse quicken. He was about to spend a bunch of glorious time watching the most perfect man he’d ever seen perform live on a stage in front of his eyes.

“Well, all of us that Blaine invited have had a blast performing with you guys tonight. You’ve been a wonderful audience, very attentive and loud,” the lead singer of Grilled Cheesus went on. “And, it’s my great pleasure to introduce to you the final group of the evening. As you already know, I met Blaine at a bar. We bonded over drinks, and I’ve considered him one of the best friends I’ve ever had since that night. It’s my great pleasure to be the guy who gets to introduce this wild band of dudes tonight. I know you probably already know because let’s be honest. You’re all here for Warbler Attack tonight, aren’t you?” The crowd cheered wildly. “Just what I thought,” the lead singer, Finn Hudson, said. “I’m going to introduce them to you one by one anyway.” He turned to look at the equipment guys. “Are we ready?” The one closest to him nodded, so the singer continued, pausing between each name for cheering and applause. “Tonight on drums, we have Miiiiiiiiiister Elliot Gilbert! On guitar, we have Mr. Jeff Sterling! On bass… Mr. Eli Crocker! Your keyboard man, Mr. Sebastian Smyyyythe! Your back-up singer and guitar god, Mr. Nick Duval! Aaaaaand finally, for the man that really needs no introduction, Mr. Blaine Anderson your lead singer!”

Blaine came trotting onto the stage, waving at everyone as if they hadn’t seen him 10 times already that night at least. He grinned, taking his place behind the mic stand and giving the lead singer of Grilled Cheesus a high five. Then, without further ado, he gestured to his band and they began their first song.

Kurt was in heaven. This was the moment he’d lived for, and he was soaking up every single second. Just as he’d imagined it would be after watching a million videos of Blaine on stage, the man’s performance was magic. He was electric, bouncing around and dancing while he sang. He even got some of his other bandmates in on it, urging them to dance along with him. His voice remained perfect, no matter how active he got, and Kurt was sure that the singer had never sounded better. It didn’t matter if he was singing an upbeat, rowdy rock song or a slow, touching ballad. He hit every note and sang every word perfectly. 

When they got to their portion of the show where Blaine did his famous cover song, however, Kurt zeroed in on the man even more. The song was a throwback to his high school days and a song he’d done at a talent show: a piano ballad version of _Teenage Dream_. Each time he sang it, Blaine changed up the melodies, the arrangement, and the way he sang the words, and each time was more hauntingly beautiful than the last. Kurt was staring at him, hands clasped in front of his chest, swaying along with the rest of the crowd and singing softly to himself when he felt a tug on his shirt. He turned his head just a bit, catching sight of Brittany beside him, her arm slung around the waist of the skinny girl. “What?” he hissed at her, his eyes never leaving the captivating man on stage.

“She’s my soulmate,” Brittany said proudly.

“What?” Kurt’s head whipped around, looking at Brittany like she’d just said she was the Queen of England. “What did you say?”

“Kurt, this is Santana. Santana, my best friend Kurt.” She grinned wide, tugging Santana a bit closer to her. “San’s my soulmate.”

“Tha-tha-that’s great, Britt,” Kurt said, doing his best to sound happy for her. He was happy, truly, that she’d found her soulmate, but he wished he hadn’t had to find out in the middle of his favorite song. He turned his attention back to the stage. _Look at those curls, those arms_ , he thought to himself as he watched Blaine getting ready to play the final chorus. _He’s sweating, too…_ His eyes traced a drop as it made its way down from Blaine’s temple to his neck. _What I wouldn’t give to be--_

“Kurt?”

“What, Britt?” He turned toward her, exasperated. _I guess I’m not listening to any more of that song right now. I hope someone’s recording it._

“Santana and I are going to share some sweet lady kisses out by the bathrooms. Find me when this is over?” She gestured toward the stage.

“Um, yeah. Sure. Enjoy,” Kurt told her, turning back to the stage just as Blaine belted out the last note. The crowd cheered loudly all around him, whistling and begging for more. _Must have been a great performance._

“Thank you. Thank you,” Blaine told the crowd as he got up from the piano. "We just have one more song we want to do for you tonight. It’s another old classic from our days in college, one that some of our original fans will recognize I’m sure.” 

_Please be_ Rise. _Please be_ Rise. _Please be_ Rise.

“But before we get started, I want to thank you all one more time for coming. Tonight has been an awesome night full of friendship and music, and I’m so glad you could make it. I also want to thank this lovely gentleman, David from Marie’s Crisis who led us in our sing-a-long songs tonight. Marie’s has always been a big supporter of The Legend Festival, and so to thank them tonight, myself and a few of my friends from the show will be joining them at the bar to continue this night of celebration and music. So, join us if you’d like. I know we’ll make some more great memories yet.  
  


“This night just proves what I’ve always thought was possible, that people who don’t know each other could all come together and be united with song. That’s all I wanted for us tonight, and that’s all I want for the world. I want the world to know that unity is possible, and we can all love each other despite our differences. That is, in part, what this last song is about tonight. We need to love one another, but we also have to love ourselves, no matter where we are in our lives.”

_Please be_ Rise. _Please be_ Rise. _Please be_ Rise.

“This song is called _Rise._ I hope you enjoy.” The crowd clapped again, and the band began their final song.

Kurt loved _Rise_ , too. It was one of his favorite songs from the band’s conception, and he listened to it often. It was a song that reminded him he had a life ahead of him yet, a life that he could still do something with, still dream through. No matter how much it sucked and no matter how much he hated it at the moment, he wasn’t at his final destination. He would rise and do what he’d always wanted to do; he had time, and he could make it.

When the last note faded away, Blaine raised his hand in the air, waving one last time at the crowd before bowing with his bandmates. Then, they all exited the stage, the lights in the area went on, and the crowd began to slowly drift apart.

_What a beautiful night…_ Kurt thought to himself as he began to walk along with the rest of the crowd toward the exit, which just so happened to be the way they’d come in. _It was perfect. Absolutely perfect. I’m so glad I got to come tonight, to bring Britt along with me to-- Britt! She found her soulmate! I need to find her!_

Stepping out of the line he'd been slowly moving along with, Kurt picked his way over toward the bathrooms, keeping his eyes peeled for his best friend. He finally found her doing exactly what she said she'd be doing: getting her sweet lady kisses on. 

"Hey, Britt," he said softly as he approached. "Show's over. You ready to go?"

Britt pulled off of her soulmate's lips to look at him with shiny, bright eyes. "Kurt!" She hopped over to him, dragging the other girl--Santana--along behind her. "You found us!"

"I did," he agreed, smiling at Santana and giving her a soft, "Hi."

"Hi," she greeted back just as softly. "You said something about going?"

"Yeah. The show's over, so…"

"Where are we going?" Brittany asked. "Back to the hotel? Can I bring San?"

"Um, she can come along for sure," Kurt told his friend, "but I was kinda… Well, I was wondering… Do-do you think we could go to Marie's Crisis?"


	3. Chapter 2 - It's Ringing In My Head

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's song: I Only Want to Be with You by Dusty Springfield  
> Lyric Inspiration:  
> “I just want to be beside you everywhere  
> As long as we’re together, honey, I don’t care  
> ‘Cause you’ve started something  
> Oh, can’t you see?  
> …  
> No matter what you do  
> I only want to be with you”

Brittany cocked her head to the side. “What’s Marie’s Crisis?” she asked. “Is that like somewhere you go to have a mental breakdown? Because my doctor said that I don’t need to go somewhere for that. It can all happen up here.” She tapped her temple, grinning at her friend.

Kurt opened his mouth to reply to his friend’s oddball comment but stopped when he saw the look on Santana’s face. They’d barely known one another for an hour, and already there was this look of love and devotion in her eyes as she took in her soulmate. There was also confusion and concern for her, but the love shown through more, making Kurt let out a little, “Aww…” at the sight. _I hope I can find my soulmate while I’m here!_

“Um, Britt,” Santana said, shaking her head to clear out whatever cobwebs had formed at hearing Brittany’s suggestion, “we’re going to talk about finding you a new doctor later, baby. But for now, no. Marie’s isn’t a mental hospital. It’s a dive bar and a fricking cool one at that.” She looked at Kurt, explaining, “I’m a born and bred New Yorker, and I’ve been to Marie’s a few times. It really is as awesome as they say. You have to be into Disney and Broadway, but that’s not a problem for me.” She shrugged. “That’s part of why I love this festival. There’s every type of music represented here, and everyone who comes loves it. I’ve come every year since it was started.”

“Oh, that’s my dream,” Kurt breathed out, getting all starry-eyed at the thought of being able to attend the festival another year. “I’d love that.” He sighed, letting his imagination run away with him for a minute. Then, he straightened up. “Anyway, I’ve heard Marie’s is great, and I’d love to go. Do you wanna tag along?”

“More than anything,” Santana assured him, pulling Brittany into a side-hug. “How do you want to get there? It’s kind of a long walk from here; would take us almost an hour. Uber or Lyft will get us there in about 15 minutes, though.”

“Um,” Kurt stuttered, wanting to say what he wanted but afraid the true-blood New Yorker would think him crazy, “I, uh--I know it’s expensive, but I’d love to take a cab? My goal was to experience everything New York had to offer, and you always hear about New York cabbies, so--”

“Say no more,” Santana told him, holding up a hand. “New York cabbies are infamous for a reason; you should definitely have at least one cab experience in your life. Let’s go find one.” She grabbed Brittany by the hand and led her out of the concert area, the blonde babbling in her ear the whole time.

Kurt trailed behind them, watching the two girls fondly. _They really are perfect for one another_ , he thought. _San just took Britt’s crazy in stride without question. I really like her. I think we might be pretty good friends._

It didn’t take them long to get out of the concert area, and they walked down the street to get to a busier part of town. “There will be more cabs down here,” Santana explained as they walked, her tall heels _click-clack_ ing loudly on the pavement as she strode. 

It didn’t take them long to find a waiting cab, and they slid in, Brittany in the middle, Kurt and San on either side of her.

“Where to?” the cabbie asked. He sounded bored, and Kurt assumed he probably was. He had to have asked that question a million times already that day, and there was probably little surprise anymore in anyone’s answers.

“Marie’s Crisis,” Santana said. “My friends have never been before.”

“We’re soulmates,” Brittany piped up, wrapping Santana’s arm around her shoulders and leaning into the other girl’s side. “We just met at a concert, and now we’re going on our first date.”

“That so?” the cabbie asked dryly. “Congrats.”

“Thanks!” Brittany bounced a little, oblivious to the cabbie’s evident sarcasm.

Kurt watched out the window as the cabbie expertly guided them through town. There was so much to look at; New York was such a busy place, and he didn’t think he’d ever tire of looking around. There was never a dull moment. The streets, even at almost 10:30 p.m., were still crowded, people bustling about here and there, women in their heels and expensive dresses, men in their suits with the expensive briefcases. Everyone looked important and like they were on a mission. 

When they pulled up outside the bar, Kurt was struck by how different the bar looked than he’d imagined. The sign with the bar’s name was written in an Old English script, and there were a few red and white striped awnings on the building, one over the door and one over a large window on the next story. The door was wooden with nine glass panels on the top. The whole thing looked very out of place in an up-to-date city, and Kurt was struck by the fact that, had he not known better, he would have thought they were approaching a building at one of those cheesy Renaissance festivals where everyone dressed in old-fashioned clothes and pretended not to know what a toilet or cell phone was.

“Thanks,” San told the cabbie, passing him some money before following Brittany out of the cab door, coming to stand next to Kurt on the sidewalk. He was looking up at the building, just taking it all in, and she nudged him lightly. “What do you think?”

Before he’d had a chance to answer, Brittany butted in.

“Why did no one tell me we were going to the circus? I would have brought my stilts so I could be the tallest woman there!” She pouted at Santana, waiting for a response.

The dark-haired girl reached out a soothing hand, running it up and down her soulmate’s arm for a moment before leaning over to whisper to Kurt, “I love her already, so it really doesn’t matter… But is she always like this?”

Kurt didn’t say anything, just nodded his head.

“Are you ready to go in?” Even on the sidewalk, they could hear distinctly that the bar was _very_ crowded. The wooden front door was propped open, and the sounds of someone playing _A Whole New World_ from _Aladdin_ could be heard. The whole bar had to have been singing at the top of their lungs because the three of them could hear every word clearly, just as the passers-by could as they went on their way. 

Thankfully, there was no line to get in as Kurt had feared on their way there, but they soon saw that there likely should have been. When they finally managed to push their way into the bar, there was almost nowhere to go. There were bodies pressed together through the entire space, shoulder to shoulder, and everyone was singing at the top of their lungs. 

“Oh, my God!” Brittany shouted to be heard over the din of singing and piano playing. “Why hasn’t anyone told these people to find their seats so the circus can start? They’re all standing in the ring, and there’s no room for the elephants!”

Santana just shook her head at her soulmate, wrapping an arm even tighter around her, and pushing her way through the crowd in the direction of the bar, Kurt following along behind them.

Kurt realized, as he followed along behind the two girls, that there was far more to Santana than what originally met the eye. She was a beautiful Latina woman, and the way she wore her hair long and straight coupled with a deep red lipstick on her lips only enhanced her beauty. More than that, though, she had an attitude that Kurt immediately admired. She was a little bit diva, a little bit crazy, and a lot confident, moving people aside with the flick of her wrist and a shake of her head. _That is exactly what Brittany needs_ , Kurt thought to himself. _Good job, Fate. Not that I ever doubted you._

Somehow, Santana was able to get them a spot at the bar, and she called the bartender over with a few quick snaps. “I’ll take a scotch on the rocks,” she informed him. “My friend here will have a small glass of red wine,” she said, gesturing to Brittany, pecking her on the lips when Britt cheered at the news, “and I’ll get whatever he’s having, too,” she said, pointing to Kurt.

The bartender nodded, moving down the bar to hear Kurt better. “For you?” he asked.

“Um, I will just have a Diet Coke, please,” Kurt said. He didn’t want to spend too much of Santana’s money, and he wasn’t really that big of an alcohol fan. It had never tasted great anyway.

“Is that really what you wanted?” Santana asked him when the bartender walked away to get their drinks. “You could have gotten something else. I don’t mind.”

Kurt shrugged. “It’s fine. I never really liked alcohol.”

“Suit yourself,” San told him, turning back to Eskimo kiss with Brittany, a huge grin on her face. It was clear to anyone who glanced at the two girls that they were delighted to have found one another.

Rather than watch the girls giggling together, Kurt spent his time looking around the bar, taking in the decor and the atmosphere of the place. He really loved that the interior was done up as an homage to the things that had happened in the building before it had become a bar: the death of Thomas Payne, the writer of _Common Sense_ , and the building’s identity as a prostitution den. The decor reflected the French revolution theme that had helped to shape its past, and Kurt was enamored with it.

Besides all of that, there was plenty of Broadway stuff to look at--not to mention listen to--a secret passion of his. Spaced out every so often around the walls were framed photos of people but with so many bodies between himself and the portraits, he couldn’t make out who each portrait depcited. There were gay pride flags running around the interior of the place, hung on a little string and draped just below the ceiling, and behind the bar was a giant mirror that was decorated with likenesses of old-fashioned soldiers ready for war and women waving them off, their handkerchiefs fluttering.

To Kurt’s left, there was another bar area with a million people standing around it, many of them leaning casually against it. The bar area created a square with the bar on three sides and a wall on the fourth. In the middle was the piano where a man sat, the same man that had played piano at the concert he’d just attended. The man was currently leading the crowd through _Sincerely Me_ from _Dear Evan Hansen_ , and everyone was singing at the top of their lungs.

Across the room from where Kurt was currently sat, there was a small stage. It wasn’t set up for a gig, but there were balloons dangling from the ceiling and more pictures that Kurt couldn’t see. People were currently milling around on the stage as well. It apparently doubled as extra seating for the bar when Marie’s was hopping like it was that night.

“Here’s your Diet Coke, sir,” the bartender told him, setting down an icy cold glass next to him. “Enjoy.” 

“Thanks,” Kurt murmured, picking up the drink and taking a long sip through the straw. Boy, that really hit the spot. He quickly realized just how thirsty he was, and he slurped down the entire thing in a few gulps, setting the glass back down with a thump and a satisfied sigh. He began to sing along as the pianist switched to _Mama Mia_ , everyone in the bar clapping and singing along.

It was fun, and Kurt was happy to people watch, glancing every once in a while in the direction of the two girls he’d come with, just to be sure they hadn’t disappeared on him. Mostly, however, he just enjoyed the environment, reveling in the fact that for the first time in a very long time, he felt like he belonged exactly where he was. He could picture it, coming out to this bar every Saturday night to enjoy show tunes and fellowship with people who were like him, fellow music lovers, Broadway enthusiasts, and, very likely, gay. He could see it, and the idea excited him. Maybe New York was going to be the place that finally changed him into the person he’d always wanted to be.

It wasn’t that he’d had a bad life. No. He had grown up as the only gay kid in the middle of Ohio, but his life hadn’t been horrible. Yes, he’d been bullied. Yes, he’d been left out of school activities, teased, and banned from his junior prom for trying to bring a boy as his date. Yes, he’d lost his father at an early age and had been raised by a single mother, but that didn’t make his life a tragedy as so many believed. It just made him human. 

So, it wasn’t that he was unhappy in his life. It was just that he wasn’t entirely pleased. He’d wanted more, but he’d had duties at home that had required him to stay. Well, required was a strong word. His mother hadn’t required anything. He’s just felt like he needed to stay so she wasn’t lonely. Now that she had a new boyfriend, a really good man who took care of her the way she needed and wanted, who might even be her new soulmate, he was feeling like he might be able to follow his own path, become who he wanted to be.

He let himself daydream for a little while, imagining what his apartment might look like, what job he might get, where he might go to school. He was suddenly broken out of his imaginings, however, when he spotted a mop of dark curls moving through the crowd. _Blaine Anderson_ . Kurt would recognize that hair anywhere, and if that made him a bit of a stalker, well, he’d own that. He watched him walk across the room for a moment, taking in the slight droop of his shoulders beneath his trademark leather jacket, the bright pink sunglasses that had been the other piece of his iconic style since his high school days. _My land is he perfect…_ Kurt thought dreamily to himself. _I wish I could talk to him, introduce myself. I’d love to stand by him for just a minute. I’m sure I’d be as tongue-tied as any other fan he’s ever met, but I’d love it regardless…_

No sooner had he thought that, however, than he lost Blaine in the crowd. _Damn his little five-foot-seven frame…_ he thought, turning back to the bar to find that the bartender had refilled his soda glass.

Kurt took a few drinks from it, watching the crowd around the piano move in closer as the bar continued to fill up. The pianist was playing a ballad from _Wicked_ : _For Good_ , one of Kurt’s favorite songs. He sang along with everyone, and as the final notes were sounding, he realized he needed to use the restroom. “Girls?” he said, leaning over and tapping Brittany on the shoulder.

“Yeah?”

“I’m running off to the bathroom. Don’t leave without me, please.”

“Kay,” Brittany agreed, going back to whatever she’d been doing to Santana’s ear.

  
“Thanks,” Kurt replied, hopping off his stool and trying to make his way through the crowd back to the far corner where he’d seen the restroom signs. He kept getting jostled and bumped, no one really paying attention to anyone but themselves. _Holy crap. Too many people!_ Kurt thought. _Am I ever going to make it back there?_


	4. Chapter 3: You Got My Head Spinning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's song was I Knew I Loved You by Savage Garden  
> Lyric inspiration:  
> “Maybe it’s intuition  
> But some things you just don’t question  
> Like in your eyes  
> I see my future in an instant  
> And there it goes  
> I think I’ve found my best friend  
> I know that it might sound more than  
> A little crazy but I believe
> 
> I knew I loved you before I met you  
> I think I dreamed you into life  
> I knew I loved you before I met you  
> I have been waiting all my life”

If Kurt was being honest, it took him way too long to move two feet from the bar. He knew that the bar was packed. Of course, he did. He’d been sitting there, sipping on his Diet Coke and watching people all night. He just hadn’t realized how much people would refuse to move! If he’d thought it was hard getting into Marie’s and making it to the bar to order a drink, it was an entirely different beast getting through the crowd now. No one wanted to move, afraid they would get shuffled to the back and away from their friends. He didn’t blame them. He really hadn’t wanted to be separated from Santana and Brittany either, but here he was, trying to shove his way through.

At first, he tried saying, “Excuse me,” but he was getting nowhere. No one heard him, and no one cared. So, he switched tactics, trying to just dive between people, splitting them with his two hands. That also didn’t work. He was too polite to shove, and the whole Midwestern, “Ope. Just gonna squeeze past you,” bit wasn’t going to fly either. 

Other people, however, were not afraid to push and shove, and as Kurt was standing in the throng, trying to figure out the best way to go and how to get out of there, he was pushed hard, stumbling a half-step backward and into someone else.

“Hey! Watch it,” the other guy yelled, pushing him back just as hard.

That sent Kurt wheeling into someone else, and he looked up at them immediately, apologizing.

“Hey, don’t sweat it.” The someone he’d bumped into was actually one of Marie’s employees, on his way back from delivering drinks to someone.

_How the hell did he get through this mess?_ Kurt wondered to himself. Deciding to take his chances, he tapped the man on the shoulder as he slid past, making his way back to the bar. “Excuse me!”

“Yeah?”

“I’m just trying to get to the bathroom. Is there a better way to go than trying to plow through all of this?” He gestured around him, the question self-explanatory.

“Um, ooh,” the employee answered, looking around them. “I guess I’d recommend going outside and around to the back of the building if you aren’t comfortable with pushing and shoving. The bathroom’s all the way at the back, and you’re going to have a really hard time getting back there at this rate.” The employee smiled. “There are some VIP guests using the back entrance, and our security guy, Bill, will probably be back there. Just tell him that Puck sent you that way to use the bathroom, and he’ll let you through. Promise.”

“Thanks,” Kurt told him, happy to have a reason to get out of the bar for a few minutes. He loved the bar; Marie’s was a fantastic environment when he wasn’t trying to get to the bathroom like a turtle going the wrong way through a school of fish.

It was much easier getting to the front door, and Kurt breathed a sigh of fresh air as he stepped onto the sidewalk. The air was cold, growing chillier by the second, and Kurt was glad he hadn’t taken off his coat at the bar. He’d need it for the walk to the back entrance. Marie’s was in the middle of the block, so he was going to have to go all the way down one side to the little alley he’d noticed just before they pulled up in order to get around to the back.

Setting one foot in front of the other, Kurt headed down the sidewalk, his mind thinking back to what Puck had said about the VIP guests. He already knew, of course, that Blaine was at the bar. He wondered if that meant that the rest of Warbler Attack was, too. Would he get the chance to meet them? That would be cool. Then, his mind began to wander… Would he get to meet Blaine?

Ah, Blaine… The one and only man that had ever hooked him from the first moment he’d laid eyes on him and kept him hooked ever since. It was a complicated love affair from Kurt’s angle, and he hadn’t breathed a word to another living soul about just how deep his affections ran for the singer.

It had all started in his music appreciation class. He hadn’t been terribly excited about enrolling for college classes at Dalton Academy, but he’d gotten a full-ride scholarship there, so he hadn’t had a lot of choices. It wasn't like he could afford tuition anywhere else. He’d enrolled as a photography major, something he thought he could stand since they didn’t have any majors he’d loved, and he’d chosen a minor in music. His first semester, he’d taken music appreciation. Upon walking into the music room on his first day of class, there had been a giant picture of Blaine on the wall, and that had been it. Kurt had swooned right then and there and been positively hooked ever since.

He’d later learned that his music appreciation teacher was Blaine Anderson’s brother, and what the hell he’d been doing at Dalton Academy Kurt had no idea. Anyway, Blaine’s brother hadn’t been able to shut up about Blaine, and Kurt had finally had to see what the fuss was all about--besides his good looks, of course. He’d watched one video, a rehearsal they’d put on their YouTube channel to promote their first album, and he’d immediately known.

Blaine had oozed confidence from every pore, had the cutest smile, the most adorable laugh, and Kurt felt, whenever he watched a new video, that Blaine was somehow looking directly at him, singing to his very soul. From that point on, Kurt’s YouTube search history had become jam-packed with Blaine. He’d watched every interview he could find, every concert recording that had been uploaded, and anything else he could find, even videos where he merely appeared in the background. Kurt had it bad, he knew it, and he didn’t care; there were worse things to fanboy about, he told himself.

Despite his major love for the boy who’d started a band at the very college he hated to be attending less than two years before Kurt, himself, had been enrolled there, Kurt hadn’t told anyone about his obsession. No one would understand, and he didn’t want to try to explain himself. He wasn’t sure _he_ truly understood it either. The closest he’d come to letting anyone know about his love for Blaine was his final photography project for his Photography 3 class last year, the class that marked the end of his junior year. They’d been told to take “interpretive photos,” and that had been the only instruction. So, Kurt had gone just a little bit crazy. He’d tracked down an old Polaroid, the kind that would spit out the photos directly after he’d taken them, and he’d used that to take the 10 shots he’d needed. Then, he’d scoured the web for music-themed photos of Blaine--well, mostly. There was one he’d found of Blaine in leather that was just plain old hot, and he couldn’t resist using it--and he’d printed them off and carefully cut the singer out. Then, he’d layered a piece of black construction paper under a colorful circle and taken snapshots of the photos of Blaine, editing them to perfection. He’d gotten an “A” on that project, and he was never quite sure if that was because of the unique photos he'd turned in or because he’d featured a subject that everyone at Dalton loved: Blaine Anderson.

Rounding the corner of the buildings at the end of the street and entering the alleyway, Kurt could just see the silhouette of a large man--probably Bill, he decided--standing just inside a short gate under an overhead light. Beyond him were a few fancier sports cars and some men dressed in leather jackets singing and laughing. Kurt couldn’t be sure, but he thought maybe they were other members of Warbler Attack. He couldn’t make them out very well, but he knew none of them were Blaine. They didn’t have his amazing hair.

As he approached, Bill called out, “Gotta go around front; this is for VIP only.”

“Actually,” Kurt replied, hoping he didn’t sound defensive or rude, “I know. But, um, Puck sent me. He said I could get into the bathroom this way instead of trying to fight through the zoo of people in there.” He jerked his thumb in the direction of the building.

Bill narrowed his eyes at him. “Who did you say sent you?” he asked again.

“Um, he said his name was Puck, I’m pretty sure,” Kurt replied. “M-maybe I got the name wrong, though? He was, uh, t-tall, and he-he had a mohawk…”

“That’s Puck,” Bill replied, giving him a smile. “Go ahead and go through. I know what you mean about the crowd. They’re always crazy like this after a big festival or music event, and Blaine’s Legends Festival really brings them in. Good luck getting into the bathroom, kid. Feel free to come back out this way, too, if you don’t want to fight your way back through the crowd.”

“Thanks,” Kurt said, smiling at the man as he opened up the tiny gate and stepped aside.

As he walked toward the open back door of Marie’s Crisis, Kurt could hear the voices of the gathered men outside, standing around in a circle. They were singing, and at first, he didn’t recognize the song. However, as he got closer, he recognized it. 

_“I knew I loved you before I met you_

_I think I dreamed you into life_

_I knew I loved you before I met you_

_I have been waiting all my life”_

He knew that song. It was _I Knew I Loved You_ by Savage Garden. Tons of people had done covers of it, including a few people he knew from Dalton when they’d been asked to choose something for their musical showcase. It was a good song, and the lyrics resonated with him. He hadn’t met his soulmate yet, didn’t have a clue who they might be, but he knew already that he loved them. Every story he’d ever heard, everything that his parents had ever told him about soulmates was that they were perfect for one another from moment one. They may not have perfect relationships, but they understood one another like no one else and loved one another as no one else could. He was ready for that, desperately needed a love like that to help him achieve everything he wanted to achieve. He’d been floating around in the universe his whole life, trying to find a place where he belonged, searching for a foothold that would give him the confidence to pursue his dreams.

Kurt recognized the voices as belonging to Nick, Jeff, Elliott, and Sebastian, four of the six members of Warbler Attack. He idly wondered where Eli was which led him to something else: _What if the rumors are true?_

A few months ago, he’d read something in Teen Magazine that had made his blood run cold. According to the exclusive interview with Eli, he and Blaine were an item. “We’ve been together for nearly six months,” he’d been quoted as saying. “I don’t want to brag or anything, but it’s pretty dope to be banging the lead singer of one of the best bands in the country.”

That was the line that had made Kurt roll his eyes. Was Warbler Attack good? Hell yeah! They were amazing! Were they among the best bands in the country? Not yet. But they could be. They just hadn’t had enough time yet, hadn’t played enough shows. They would be, Kurt was sure, if Blaine’s ever-growing connections and friendships were anything to go by. The interview all around, however, had struck a sour note with him, though he’d tried not to let it bother him. He’d never really liked Eli. Something about him--the way he acted like such a pompous ass, really--made Kurt not trust him, and he was beyond disappointed that Blaine, someone so kind and caring, who radiated love and support every time he opened his mouth, would willingly be with someone like that. It was enough to make him question whether or not the rumor was true, but he didn’t pursue it after the interview. That was enough.

The saving grace had been that there was no mention of the two of them being soulmates. While it was possible to be in a relationship with someone who wasn’t your soulmate, they almost never lasted very long, and it was even rarer still that they ended in marriage. So, Kurt had done his best to push the idea of "Bee-Li"--as Teen Magazine had dubbed them--out of his head.

Inside Marie’s Crisis, Kurt had a whole new view of the place. The back door opened up just to the left of the stage, and the bathrooms were right there. There were almost no people standing over there, and Kurt wondered if the bar kept them away on nights like that night on purpose. He couldn’t be sure, but it seemed likely. They didn’t need anyone to bombard the VIPs when they came in.

Kurt made a beeline for the bathroom, pushing open the creaky wooden door and taking in his surroundings immediately. The bathrooms were rather dingy in the small bar, left that way on purpose. They weren’t gross, but they were far from pristine. There was chipping paint on the walls, old and scuffed enamel sinks, and vintage paper towel holders on the walls. Though he would never try to recreate something like this, the condition of the bathroom gave the place some charm, and it was a hotspot for people to take photos to post on the internet; there was just something about the place they seemed to like.

Heading over to one of the two urinals in the room, Kurt did his business before going to the sink to wash up. He’d just pumped some soap into his hand when he heard the creak of the stall door open and shut. Glancing in the mirror out of habit, Kurt’s breath caught in his throat when he saw a face he’d recognize anywhere: pink sunglasses nestled into curly hair, an adorable little nose, triangular eyebrows, and lips that were just perfect enough to kiss. There was no mistaking who he--and he alone--was sharing a bathroom with: Blaine Anderson.

The lead singer approached the sink beside Kurt’s turning on the faucet before pumping a bit of soap onto his own hands. 

_Stop staring. He’s going to catch you and think you’re a weirdo. Stop staring. Stop staring!_ Kurt yelled at himself, but he couldn’t avert his eyes. Blaine was even more gorgeous in person, and Kurt was taking him all in.

Unbidden, more lyrics from the song the members of Warbler Attack had been singing rang through his head: 

_“Maybe it’s intuition_ _  
_ _But some things you just don’t question_ _  
_ _Like in your eyes_

 _I see my future in an instant_ _  
_ _And there it goes”_

Realizing that someone was watching him, Blaine flicked his eyes up to meet Kurt’s, smiling at him. The golden hues in his eyes that only ever seemed to appear in the most perfect of conditions and his smile made the other man feel like he was watching magic happen right in front of him. “Hey,” Blaine greeted pleasantly, turning his gaze back to the sink so he could rinse his hands.

_“I think I’ve found my best friend_

_I know that it might sound more than_

_A little crazy but I believe”_

Kurt opened his mouth, and at first, no sound came out. He opened and closed it a few times, looking for all the world like a fish out of water. Then, he closed it again, licked his lips, and swallowed, stuttering out, “I--You--I mean, you--I’m--You’re--It’s--Sentence--Kurt--Hi.” Everything flowed together and came out in one long, smushed together byte of sound.

Blaine turned off the tap and reached for a few paper towels sitting on the small ledge between them. His eyebrows knitted together as he looked at Kurt once more, concern lacing his gaze. “What?”


	5. Chapter 4: You're Crazy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's song: Adore You by Harry Styles  
> Lyric Inspiration:  
> “I get so lost inside your eyes  
> Would you believe it?
> 
> You don’t have to say you love me  
> You don’t have to say nothing  
> You don’t have to say you’re mine
> 
> Honey  
> I’d walk through fire for you  
> Just let me adore you”

_I--You--I mean, you--I’m--You’re--It’s--Sentence--Kurt--Hi? What the hell was that, Hummel?_ Kurt asked himself, shaking his head a bit. He was successful in clearing out a few of the cobwebs that had formed while he stared at Blaine, and he was just about to correct himself when Blaine opened that beautiful mouth of his and said something. Kurt promptly lost his train of thought again. 

Blaine grinned at what Kurt was sure was a very embarrassing expression he was making and asked, “A little bit starstruck, are we?”

All Kurt could do was nod.

“Well, let me see if I can help with that,” Blaine offered, handing Kurt some paper towels for his sopping wet hands. He reached over to turn off the still running faucet, brushing Kurt’s skin lightly on the way by. He paused for only a moment, and Kurt wondered if he could feel the same sparks shooting up his arm that Kurt did, but a moment later he was moving again, standing up straight and giving Kurt that signature smile the other man recognized from so many interviews.

_Damn. He is as charismatic as he seems. And, so much hotter in person…_

“Hi,” Blaine said, sticking out a hand. “My name’s Blaine. I’m just a guy from the middle of Ohio, visiting Marie’s after this awesome concert I attended. Who are you?”

“I’m, uh…” _Oh, God! What’s my name?_ “Um, I’m Kurt.”

“Kurt...” Blaine said, the name rolling off his tongue in that same, smooth caramel tone he used when he was singing. “Is that a name you just got, or have you had it forever?”

“What?”

“Sorry. Just a little humor since you were having so much trouble remembering your name. Seriously, you have nothing to fear. I’m just a normal person, just like any other guy.”

“But-but-but you’re not!” Kurt sputtered, tossing his barely used paper towels in the trash can before realizing that his hands were still dripping. “You-You’re _Blaine Anderson._ ”

“Yep,” Blaine agreed. “But I prefer to just go by Blaine.”

“Right. Right. I’m sorry.” 

“It’s okay. I get it all the time.”

“I’m sure you do,” Kurt said quietly, reaching for a few more towels and actually drying his hands this time. Now that Blaine was speaking to him, he was feeling a little more confident, didn’t feel like he had to be tripping all over himself to say the right thing.

“So, Kurt,” Blaine went on, not making a move to leave the bathroom yet, “what are you doing in the bathroom at Marie’s Crisis?” He stretched out an arm, pressing it against the wall as he cocked his head in Kurt’s direction just a bit.

“Well, I was--”

“Don’t actually tell me why you’re in the bathroom.” Blaine chuckled. “That’s a bit too intimate for a first meeting, don’t you think? Just, um, why are you at Marie’s tonight?”

Kurt thought he could detect a gentle blush on Blaine’s cheeks, and he smiled. “I was at your festival earlier tonight, and when you announced that some of you were coming to Marie’s afterward, I thought it might be fun to try it, too, since it’s my first and possibly my only time in New York.”

Blaine’s eyes grew wide at that. “First and only? You don’t like it here?”

“No. It’s not that. It’s just… Well, there’s other stuff. It’s, uh, it’s a long story.”

“Well, can I buy you a drink? I could go for a long story about now.”

Kurt’s eyes nearly bugged out of his head. “ _Blaine Anderson_ wants to buy me a drink?”

“Well, it’s just Blaine, but yeah.”

With a smirk, Kurt asked, “ _Just Blaine_ wants to buy me a drink?”

“Smooth.”

“Thanks,” Kurt chuckled. “But for real. You want to get me a drink? Why?”

“You’re interesting,” Blaine answered, their eyes meeting, truly meeting, for the first time in their encounter. His gaze betrayed that he might be thinking something else, but he didn’t add anything to it besides, “I’d like to get to know you more. If you want to.”

Kurt nodded, not sure whether he should squeal with excitement or run to the stall and barf from anxiety. “I’d love to…”

“Great! I just need to pop out back and let the guys know I’m gonna be in here having a few drinks. If you want to tag along, I’ll introduce you.”

“O-okay,” Kurt stuttered, following him out of the bathroom and out the back door he’d come in a few minutes before. Blaine led him straight over to the group of guys he’d seen singing and laughing together on his way inside, tapping Elliot on the shoulder.

“Hey hey, man,” Blaine greeted, fist-bumping Elliot almost as if he hadn’t seen him in days instead of minutes. “I wanted to let you know I’m gonna be having drinks inside for a bit. And, I wanted to introduce you to someone.” He turned to look behind him, beckoning Kurt--who was standing a few feet back, chewing on his nails and watching them with large eyes--forward. “This is Kurt. We met in the bathroom.”

Elliott looked at his friend skeptically before giving Kurt a warm smile. “Hi. I’m Elliot.”

“Hi,” Kurt said softly. “I-I kinda know who all of you are.” He felt himself flush as he looked around the small group. “I’m a fan,” he admitted sheepishly.

“Well, sounds like it’s test time then,” Sebastian said, smirking. “We’ll believe you if you can tell us who we are and what we play.”

“Oh, that’s easy,” Kurt replied. “You’re Sebastian, the keyboard guy.” He pointed at each person as he spoke about them. “You’re Nick. You do back-up vocals and guitar. That’s Jeff who does guitar. Elliot is the drummer, and Blaine is, well, everyone knows Blaine’s the lead singer.” He smiled at the lead singer who beamed back.

“You forgot one,” came a slimy voice from behind them.

When Kurt turned to look in the direction of the voice, he saw Eli leaning over Blaine’s shoulder. “You’re Eli, the bassist,” Kurt said dryly. 

“That’s right!” the other man sang. “Hi, Blainey Bear.” He pressed a kiss to his cheek before glancing back at Kurt, looking him up and down for a moment before asking, “And, you are?”

Kurt’s heart dropped to his feet as he watched the interaction. _I guess they really are together,_ he thought sadly.

“This,” Blaine replied, wriggling out from beneath Eli’s arms to stand a bit closer to Kurt, “is Kurt. I met him in the bathroom, and we hit it off. So, I invited him to have drinks; I was just coming out to let the rest of you know what I was going to be up to.”

There was a mumble of “Okay,” and “Have fun,” from the group, but Eli instantly began to pout.

“I thought we were gonna go back to our hotel early tonight, Blaine,” he whined. “You promised.”

“I did not,” Blaine disagreed. “I said we could go if I were bored, and now that I’ve got Kurt to talk to, I’m not bored at all.” He beamed in Kurt’s direction. “Shall we go in and let them know what we want?”

“If you need to go, I understand,” Kurt replied.

“I don’t.” Glaring in Eli’s direction, Blaine wrapped his arm around Kurt’s and started to walk back into the bar. “Anyone else coming?” he called back over his shoulder, pausing just before they went in.

“Elliot’s tired, so we’re going back to our room,” Seb replied. “Probably leaving in a few.”

“Us, too,” Jeff supplied. “We’ll see you tomorrow, Blaine.”

“Night, guys,” Blaine replied, not waiting for Eli to say anything else. Then, he guided Kurt inside and over to the stage where there was one small table tucked into a corner with a handwritten “Reserved” sign on it. Blaine plopped down in a chair, gesturing for Kurt to take the one next to him. Then, he picked up his phone and typed out a quick message. When he was done, he looked at Kurt with a wide smile.

“Do you normally text while you’re chatting with your bathroom acquaintances?” Kurt joked.

“No. I have one of the bartender’s numbers, and I text him when I get in here. It’s always so packed that they can’t see me when I sit down. But I usually think texting when you’re supposed to be getting to know someone is rude.”

“I agree,” Kurt said. When he suddenly felt his phone vibrate in his pocket, however, his eyes grew wide again. “Crap!”

“What?” Blaine asked, concerned.

“Oh, I came here with my friend and her soulmate--they met at your festival, by the way. So cute--and I told them I was going to the bathroom and left them at the bar! I’m sure they’re worried that I’m not back yet.”

“Well, text them!” Blaine urged. “In this case, it would be rude not to.”

Kurt grinned. “Thanks.” He pulled out his phone and tapped out a message to Britt.

**To Britt, 11:03 pm:** _I met Blaine Anderson in the bathroom, and now, I’m getting drinks with him. I’m okay, but don’t wait for me._

He only had to wait a moment for her reply. 

**From Britt, 11:04 pm:** _K. Going to hotel for sweet lady lovin’._

Kurt grinned to himself, stuffing his phone back into his pocket. He found Blaine staring at him dreamily, his cheek propped up on his hand.

“Everything good?” he asked with a smile.

“Yep. I let them know they could leave whenever. I’ll get an Uber back to our hotel later.”

“Good. Now, I get you all night,” Blaine commented.

Kurt was going to ask if that was a good or a bad thing, but just then, their waiter showed up. He grinned when he recognized the man as Puck. “Hey,” he said softly.

“You two know each other?” Blaine asked, confused.

“Not really. Puck just told me how to get to the bathroom.”

“Ohhhhh,” Blaine replied. “Thanks, man,” he said, grinning at Puck.

“My pleasure,” Puck returned. “What can I do for you tonight, Blaine?”

“I’ll take a beer, and whatever this guy gets is going on my tab, too,” Blaine answered him, gesturing to his guest with his thumb.

“Just a Diet Coke for me.”

“You can get alcohol, you know,” Blaine told him.

“I’m not really a drinker unless I’m safely at home with someone I trust. Even then, it’s just one drink. Sometimes, not even that.. Soda’s fine.”

“I’ll be right back with those,” Puck told them and disappeared into the sea of bodies again.

“So…” Blaine said after a few beats of silence. “Tell me about yourself.”

They spoke for hours, Puck popping by every now and then to replace drinks and take away empty glasses.

Kurt felt as though he was getting lost in Blaine’s eyes the longer they talked. He was so captivating, the way he laughed the way he spoke. It was like he was Kurt’s perfect match, and each move he made, each thing he said amazed Kurt more than the last. In fact, as he listened to Blaine, the world seemed to fade away around him until there was no one else in the room but the two of them, and nothing mattered but their conversation. 

As he listened, Kurt was vaguely reminded of some song lyrics he’d heard in a song on the radio a few days before the festival:

_“I get so lost inside your eyes_ _  
_ _Would you believe it?_ _  
_ _  
_ _You don’t have to say you love me_ _  
_ _You don’t have to say nothing_ _  
_ _You don’t have to say you’re mine_ _  
_ _  
_ _Honey_

 _I’d walk through fire for you_ _  
_ _Just let me adore you”_

Some part of him thought that those words might be true, that he might actually be falling for Blaine. That wasn’t wise; it certainly wasn’t rational, and it would most definitely end in heartbreak. He couldn’t exactly help himself, though. He’d already adored Blaine before he’d ever even met the man. He’d adored him for years, feeling this connection to someone he thought he’d never speak to. Still, here he was in a crowded bar, talking to him as if the two of them were the only thing that mattered. It was surreal, and Kurt wouldn’t change it or what he was feeling for the world.

By around 2 a.m., Blaine had had six beers and was definitely feeling it. He was still fun to talk to, though, and his drunken antics were making Kurt laugh.

“Wait, so you’re, like, _actually_ enrolled at Dalton? Like, right now? That’s so cool! Wow.”

“Yeah. I am. I’m in my last year,” Kurt told him, smiling.

“Do you know my big brother, Cooper? He’s like--He’s taller than me, but, like, not nearly as handsome.”

“I’ve had him once or twice,” Kurt confessed, feeling like he’d been smiling for too long. His jaw was beginning to ache, but he didn't really mind. “He introduced me to your band during my very first semester there, actually.”

“Yeah. He’s cool like that,” Blaine said, taking another slurp of his beer. “Always lookin’ out for me. He coulda been a star, too, ya know. But he told me he jus’ wanted to stay in Ohio.”

“That’s the last place I’d want to be forever,” Kurt confessed. “Kinda wish I could stay in New York forever. I like it here. The atmosphere, the people. I finally feel like I belong, ya know. Kinda wish I never had to leave.”

Blaine nodded. “Well, I can’t help you stay, but you don’t _gotta_ go back. You could, I dunno, man… You could come with me an’ make art. Jus’ be happy.”

“What do you mean I could go with you?”

“On tour,” Blaine replied, waving a hand in the air. “Me ‘n’ the guys leave soon on tour… You could come with...”

“Really?” Kurt’s eyes lit up, an idea taking hold in his mind.

“Abs’lutely,” Blaine replied. “Now, what’s your fav’rite song of mine?”

It was not long after that that Puck came over to tell the two of them that the bar was shutting down and they needed to go home. Apparently, Eli had sent their personal driver to the bar, and he’d been waiting there for nearly two hours to pick Blaine up. Kurt called himself an Uber then went to stand outside in the cold night to wait for his ride.

“Wan’ me wait with you?” Blaine asked him, leaning heavily on Kurt’s shoulder when his driver tried to pull him past.

“No. You go. I’m okay,” Kurt replied. “The app says he should be here in four minutes.”

“‘Kay. If you ‘cide you wanna go on tour, lemme know. Lemme see your phone.” He made grabby hands for the device until Kurt handed it over, pretty sure he knew what Blaine wanted. “There,” Blaine said after a few moments, handing the phone back. “I sent me a text so you c’n have my number. It says your name an’ the hotel I’m stayin’ in.”

“Thanks,” Kurt replied, smiling at the other man.

“Are you coming, Blaine?” the driver asked, tapping his foot impatiently. “Eli will not quit texting me.”

“Yeah. ‘m comin’,” Blaine replied, leaning over a bit further and giving Kurt a sloppy kiss on his cheek. “Bye,” he mumbled, stumbling toward the car.

Kurt longed to grab him and guide him there, but he was still rooted to his spot, struck dumb by the fact that Blaine had just kissed his cheek. “Bye,” he whispered back, watching as the driver got Blaine loaded into the back of the car and pulled out into NYC traffic.

  
A moment later, his Uber arrived, and Kurt climbed into the back, greeting the driver without really knowing what he was doing. His mind was on the last few things Blaine had told him. _I have his phone number,_ Kurt thought. _His hotel. He invited me on tour. Should I go? Should I stay? What do I do?_ The questions kept tumbling round and round in his brain, and he couldn’t stop thinking about them. _Should I go on an adventure with_ the _Blaine Anderson, or should I go back to Dalton and my boring, Blaine-free life?_


	6. Chapter 5: Your Magical Mystery Ride

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's song: Conversations in the Dark by John Legend  
> Lyric Inspiration:  
> “We got places we both gotta be  
> But there ain’t nothing I would rather do  
> Than blow off all my plans for you  
> …  
> When no one seems to notice  
> And your days, they seem so hard  
> …  
> I won’t ever try to change you, change you  
> I will always want the same you, same you  
> Swear to everything I pray to  
> That I won’t break your heart”

When he got back to his hotel room, the first thing Kurt did was take a shower. He was glad he and Britt had decided to get separate rooms for the trip despite the added cost. He did _not_ want to consider what he could have walked in on now that his friend had met her soulmate. He was happy for her, over the moon in fact, but he definitely did not want to see any of that.

Kurt had hoped that the shower would wash away some of the ick and filth from the evening, and while it worked to clean his skin, there were still some rather unpleasant thoughts floating through his head. He had been disturbed by the display of--apparently unreciprocated--affection he’d seen between Eli and Blaine. Eli had acted like a child, and Blaine had looked disgusted by his outburst. _I’m glad they weren’t hanging all over one another; that would have been just as bad, but I can’t move past the feeling that Blaine’s not really into whatever is happening between them. I hope he’s not being coerced._

That would be the worst part of being famous, he supposed, having to do things with one’s personal life that one wouldn’t normally do just to keep up appearances. The whole idea made him feel icky inside, and he quickly pushed away the thoughts, deciding instead to focus on the real conundrum at hand: should he go back to Ohio or head out on tour with Blaine?

He had realized, a short time after he’d opened his texts in the car and read the one Blaine had sent to himself, that he didn’t really know a lot about the singer’s intentions. He’d had no reason to invite him on tour with them, and Kurt wasn’t completely sure that the invitation wasn’t a joke or an accident since Blaine had been, apparently, pretty drunk when they’d left the bar. Still, there was something in the other man’s eyes that had looked like trust and appreciation the whole night, and Kurt was hesitant to believe that he’d treat him that way. What would he, famous Blaine Anderson, have to gain by manipulating and tricking a fan he’d just met? Did he just need a good story to tell the press? It seemed unlikely as Kurt had only ever heard rave reviews about the man, both from other fans who’d met him and people who’d worked with him on records and video shoots. He seemed to be an all-around good guy, and Kurt had experienced nothing to convince him otherwise while they chatted at Marie’s.

Sitting down with the hotel notepad and pen, Kurt decided to make a list to help himself comb through his thoughts. He’d learned to do this early on from his mother, and it was a habit that stuck even now when he was trying to make tough choices. It helped, so he kept using it despite how time-consuming it could be if he was in a real pinch. At the top of the page, Kurt wrote out his conundrum: “Go with Blaine or go back to Ohio.” Then, tapping his pen lightly against his chin, he started to brainstorm.

What was there for him in Ohio if he went back? His mother was there, of course, but his brain went immediately back to the conversation they’d had a few days before he’d left for New York.

***

“Kurt, are you happy?” his mother asked, coming to sit by him at the kitchen table. He’d been working hard on homework all weekend despite having come home to see her, stating that he wanted to be ahead before he left for his trip mid-week.

He looked up at her, his brow knitting in confusion. “Why do you ask?” he said instead of answering.

“I was just wondering,” Elizabeth said, sitting down in a chair beside her son. “You’ve been my rock ever since your dad died, and while I appreciate that, I never meant for you to become the ‘man of the family’ so to speak. I wanted you to be a kid, and I thought you’d take the chance to explore your hobbies more when you graduated high school. But then you went to Dalton, and you’re studying photography and--Oh, I don’t know. You never complain, honey, and I admire that about you, but I just want you to be happy, not surviving for my sake.”

“Mom…” Kurt whispered, doing his best to keep a lid on his emotions. They talked like this from time to time; they’d both realized they sometimes needed the relief of being able to say what they were thinking in a safe environment, something they could be for each other. “I’m happy. Just trying to do what’s best for the family.”

“But you’re too young to be worrying about that,” Elizabeth protested, scooting a bit closer. “You should be doing what makes you happy. You’re only in your 20s once, and I can’t stand that I’m taking that away from you.”

“You’re not,” Kurt replied shaking his head. “Honestly, Mom. I don’t feel burdened or like I’m not living my life.”

“You do,” Elizabeth agreed. “I can see it in your eyes, and you wear it like a badge. I’m sorry, honey.” She took his hand, cupping it in hers and patting it a little. When she turned it over, she found his soulmark blazing up at her, and her eyes seemed to light up then. “You’re going to New York with Brittany, right?”

He nodded. “Yeah, Mom. Why?”

Tenderly, she stroked a finger across his mark. “I hope you come back a changed man, a man with a soulmate on his arm.” She paused only a moment before saying, “Actually, I hope you don’t come back. Not because I don’t love you or I don’t want to see you but because I know that New York is your dream. And, I hope you find him there, and he convinces you to stay.”

Kurt was getting choked up as he gently took her wrist, turning it over to reveal the Lima, Ohio, soulmark: a water tower with “Lima” emblazoned on it. He drew a small circle next to it where the heart had been when his father was still alive. “I hope when I come back,” he’d whispered, fighting to keep the tears from spilling down his face and his voice from cracking, “that there’s a heart there, Mom. I want you to be happy, and I really do think that Kai might be the one. Take that chance?” he asked her, looking up into her own tear-filled eyes. “Kiss him and see if you might be able to love him?”

Elizabeth nodded, pressing a gentle kiss to her son’s cheek. “As long as you promise that you’ll follow your dream.”

Wrapping her in a hug, Kurt whispered, “I’ll do my best.”

***

_I think she’ll be okay if I don’t come rushing back home,_ he mused to himself, putting “Happy Mom” on his list.

He was enrolled in school in Ohio, but he didn’t love it. Dalton was a good school with good teachers; it just wasn’t where his heart was. Photography, while fun, was not really his passion. He’d enjoyed his classes and had actually learned a lot from the few professors he’d had the opportunity to take classes from. His real passion, however, was music. He wanted to write it mostly, but playing it was fun, too. He regretted not having learned to play the piano better, but he had picked up the guitar easily. He did most of his composing on that; it was easy enough. What he really loved, however, was lyric writing. His bedroom back home--along with the backpack he’d brought to New York with him--was stuffed full of notebooks that had pages and pages of lyrics in them, some poetic and some stories. All of them full of notes about singers he’d like to have play the songs. Many were already assigned to Blaine. _How better to learn about music than to follow around a singer? A singer I already know I have great respect for,_ he thought to himself once again.

This time, he wrote down, “Leaving school with no degree.” After a few moments, he followed that up with, “Following my dreams” and “Learning about music.”

_What else keeps me in Ohio?_ Originally, had Santana not waltzed her way into the picture, Kurt would have put Brittany on that list. She was such a sweetheart and a wonderful friend, but she was a little batty and completely innocent. She needed someone to look out for her, and Kurt had been happy to step up and take that role. He was a natural caregiver, at least according to his mother, and he had seen something special in Brittany. She really was a smart girl, able to pick up on the little nuances in people that they didn’t even know they were exhibiting. She was fascinating and fun to be around most of the time, and she always made him smile. She just needed a little looking after; that was all. Now, she had Santana to fill that role, and while they would always be friends, she was no longer a tie to home.

_The only other thing tying me back home is my job, but I don’t have a problem quitting,_ he realized, quickly writing, “Can get out of tired job” on the list. Wedding photographer was just not his calling, and he knew that Chang and Chang Wedding Photos would have no problem finding someone else to fill his spot. There was always a young photographer looking for a job.

Looking at the piece of paper in front of him, Kurt realized he’d only listed one reason that would keep him from remaining in New York. He was sure, if he thought about it for a while longer, he could come up with more emotional reasons not to go with Blaine, but it seemed as though Fate was driving him toward a life on the road with the band, at least for now. So, taking a deep breath, he made a decision, speaking it aloud to make it feel more real: “I’m going on tour with Blaine and Warbler Attack.”

He felt a small sense of peace wash over him, and he sighed contentedly. There was a sudden weight lifted off of his shoulders each time he made a decision, and this time was no exception. In fact, he felt even more relieved because not going back to Ohio meant a new chapter for him. He could do this; it was time.

The first thing Kurt did was schedule text messages to the people he knew would have to know immediately about his decision.

**To Mom, send at 8:15 a.m.:** _Your wish came true. I met someone in New York. I don’t know yet if they’re my soulmate, but I’m going to give a new adventure a try. More updates later, just wanted you to know I’m safe but not coming home._

**To Britt, send at 8:15 a.m.:** _You’ll never believe it, but Blaine Anderson invited me to go on tour with him. I’m going to say yes, so I won’t be flying home with you on Sunday. Maybe San can take my seat on the way home._

**To Tina Cohen-Chang, send at 8:15 a.m.:** _I am sorry to do it this way, but I am formally quitting my job. I have met someone in New York who is offering me a door to the dream I’ve always wanted. I can’t pass it up. You’ve been a wonderful employer, and I thank you for all the opportunities you’ve given me._

Once that was done, Kurt took a few hours to research how to drop out of college. He knew he wouldn’t be getting a refund for the courses he was currently enrolled in, and that was fine. It was too late in the game, and frankly, he didn’t need the money. Finally, he discovered that he could simply email the Dean and state his reason. A drop out would go in his file but not on his record and wouldn’t hinder him from being enrolled somewhere else. _Perfect!_ he thought, locating the Dean’s email address and opening up a new message.

_Dean Sylvester,_

_I am writing to tell you that I am leaving your school and shall not be returning. My departure has nothing to do with your school, so do not fear repercussions. I simply have a better opportunity._

_Regards,_

_Kurt Hummel_

_Student ID #1472683_

With that off his plate, Kurt got on the airline's website to cancel his ticket. There was no refund for that, either. 

By the time he was finished, it was after 4 a.m. That was too early to head off to Blaine's hotel, and try as he might, he knew he wasn't going to fall asleep. He was too nervous and excited. So, he decided to spend some time trying to write. It was dark in his room, but he didn't bother to turn on any lights, preferring to part the curtains and write by the light of the street lamps shining in. It was an aesthetic he hoped would inspire him. 

Eventually, some shards of lyrics left his brain and flowed out his fingers, and he found that his inspiration, though partially from the dark room, also came from Blaine, a fact that surprised him. 

As much as Kurt had obsessed over Blaine in the last few years and yes, he would admit it, even admired his body, he'd never had a romantic thought about him. He wondered to himself numerous times what it would be like to be friends with such a man, but he'd never, until that very moment, thought of him in a romantic sense. Yet he'd caught himself wondering what it might be like to cuddle with him, to kiss his lips gently, or whisper secrets to him. The words started to flow then. 

_“We got places we both gotta be_

_But there ain’t nothing I would rather do_

_Than blow off all my plans for you_

_…_

_When no one seems to notice_

_And your days, they seem so hard_

_…_

_I won’t ever try to change you, change you_

_I will always want the same you, same you_

_Swear to everything I pray to_

_That I won’t break your heart”_

He didn't know where the words came from, but he felt them nonetheless. _Is there something more to this than just a fan and a musician?_ he wondered. He'd only said he wasn't sure if Blaine was his soulmate to his mother because he'd known she'd ask. Maybe there was more to it than he'd let himself believe?

Finally, around 7, Kurt hopped in the shower before gathering up his things and checking out of the hotel. They promised to refund his credit card for the night he wouldn't be staying and wished him a good day. Then, he was out the door, starting his adventure. 

He was too eager. Kurt knew he was too eager, so instead of finding an Uber or a cab to take him to the hotel, he decided to walk. He needed the fresh morning air to clear his head and keep him from getting to Blaine's too early. Who knew how late the singer would want to sleep in? He was probably already pushing it getting there around eight.

His walk was pleasant. He stopped at a small coffee shop nearby Blaine's hotel and bought the two of them coffee and a few donuts. He figured it was the least he could do for waking him up so early. 

When he pushed into the hotel lobby at 8:05, Kurt went straight to the front desk. "Excuse me," he said to the woman working the front desk. "Can you tell me which room Blaine Anderson is in? He's expecting me."

The woman looked him up and down. "I'm afraid not. Security reasons. You understand." She pursed her lips, looking like she wanted to tell him to go away. 

"I don't actually. I'm not just a fan trying to see him. He invited me last night. He's expecting me. Ask him."

"Without some kind of proof, there's nothing I can do," the woman said. "There's security on his floor, and we have direct orders that Mr. Anderson is not to be disturbed." This time, she raised her brow as if daring him to confront her further. 

"Guess I'll just have to call him," Kurt snipped, pulling out his phone. He knew they wouldn't just let him up but to turn him away without checking with Blaine was rude, and he didn't like this woman's eyebrow being raised at him. 

Quickly, he dialed Blaine's phone number, which he had added to his contacts at the hotel, and put the phone on speaker, looking at the woman behind the desk with his own sass. 

The phone rang several times, and Kurt was afraid that he wasn't going to pick up. Then, at the last moment, he heard what could only be described as a growl. "Yeah?"

"I-it's Kurt. From the bar last night. I'm down in the lobby. Can I come up?"

There was a long pause. Then, "Kurt? From last night? Um, yeah? I guess…"

"Will you tell the receptionist to give me your room number?" 

"This is Blaine Anderson, room 206. Let him up."

"There," Kurt smirked, clicking the end button and pocketing his phone again. "Satisfied?"

"My apologies. Right this way," the receptionist said, leading him to the elevator. "Second floor. I'll let the guards know."

Kurt fiddled with the tray that held the coffee and donuts as he rode the short ride to the second floor. When the door opened, he was greeted by two tall, burly men in black shirts. They had radios clipped to their collars. "Kurt?" they asked. 

"Yes. That's me."

They nodded, moving aside to let him pass just down the hall to room 206.

Kurt knocked, hearing a song playing in the background. 

A moment later, Blaine opened the door and peered out through a small crack. When he saw Kurt, he gave him a quick smile and opened the door wider. "Come in."

"Thanks," Kurt said softly, stepping aside. "I brought coffee and donuts." 

"Oh. Thanks," Blaine said mildly. He opened his mouth once or twice without saying anything, looking at Kurt curiously. 

"Yes?" Kurt chuckled at his friend's curious face. 

"Um, it's not like I'm not happy to see you, but what are you doing here?"

"Oh… Um, you asked me?"

"I did?"

Kurt nodded. "Last night. When we left the bar. You said I could go on tour with you."

"I-I did?"

Kurt nodded, even as his face fell. "Did you not mean it?"

Blaine paused, not sure what to say. He had no memory of telling Kurt he could come along. However, he couldn't bear to see this beautiful man in front of him upset. He was wearing his emotions like a mask, and it broke Blaine's heart to look at him. He shook his head. "I wasn't lying. I just…"

"I can go…"

"No! Wait! Please don't!"

"I can see when I'm not wanted, Blaine. It was a nice fantasy but nothing more, clearly. Thanks for the few moments of joy." He turned to open the door again. 

"That's where you're wrong."

"Excuse me?"

"I want you to come. I do."

"Why the hesitation then?"

"Well…" Blaine paused, not sure what to tell him. Did he tell him that he was the reason he hadn't slept at all the night before, the reason Eli had broken up with him as soon as he’d gotten back to the hotel the night before and now his bandmate refused to talk to him? Did he tell him that he'd lain on his bed all night, staring at the ceiling, seeing his face in his mind and wondering if he'd ever see him again? Not yet. "It's complicated," he said at last. "I will tell you. Just not yet. Just know I want you to come along."

"Do you promise to tell me?"

"Yes."

"When?"

"Over our coffee and donuts?" Blaine offered. 

In response, Kurt went over to the small table beside a window, pulled out a chair, and plopped down. "What are you waiting for then?" he asked, gesturing to the chair across from him.

"Well, we're leaving today. So, I really need to shower and get going. Tell you on the bus?"

"Where are we going?" Kurt asked, watching as Blaine waltzed over to grab a coffee and a donut. 

"Philly."

"And, you're sure you want me to go?"

Blaine nodded profusely, his mouth full. "Imf surf."

Kurt laughed loudly. "What?"

"I'm sure," Blaine repeated after he swallowed. 

"Fine then," Kurt agreed. "You can tell me on the bus."


	7. Chapter 6: I'm Out of My Mind

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today’s song: You Are the Reason by Leona Lewis & Calum Scott  
> Lyric Inspiration:  
> “And you are the reason  
> That I’m still breathing  
> I’m hopeless now  
> …  
> I’d spend every hour, of every day  
> Keeping you safe  
> …  
> You are the reason”
> 
> I'm a day behind now because this chapter is so big, but I'll hopefully be able to catch up this week.

Kurt stayed sitting at the little table in Blaine’s room, sipping on his coffee and snacking on his donut while he watched the singer scurry around his room, hastily packing his things and getting ready to leave. He felt a little bad that he was just watching, but short of refolding Blaine’s clothes for him, he didn’t think he could be much help. Besides, Blaine didn’t ask, and he didn’t want him to feel like he was overstepping by volunteering to help him clean up after he’d invited himself along on tour.

Eventually, after nearly an hour of packing, Blaine turned to look at Kurt. “That all you have?” he asked, gesturing to Kurt’s one duffel and his backpack. “That should be easy enough to store.”

“Yeah. I packed for a four-day trip, not a tour,” Kurt said, immediately regretting his words. _God, that was snarky._ “I-I mean, I just didn’t know it would be an option, ya know? I’m sorry. I-I shouldn’t have said that. I can just… You know, why don’t I just go? I don’t-I don’t think--”

“Woah. Woah. Slow your roll there, Kurt. I was just asking so I knew how much space I needed to make with my stuff. It’s not a problem; I’m not judging. And, just because I don’t remember asking you to come along yet doesn’t mean you aren’t welcome.” He crossed the room to be closer to Kurt, bending so he could look him straight in the eye. “I was going to wait to tell you this until we were on the bus, but I’m glad you’re coming. You’re--” He stopped himself before he could say, _You’re cute, and I want to spend some time staring at you,_ and instead ended with, “interesting.” _Still just as lame as it was last night in the bathroom,_ he thought to himself, inwardly cringing. 

“I’m so glad ‘Just Blaine’ finds me interesting,” Kurt mocked, giving Blaine a smile anyway. Then, his face became a little more serious again, and he said, “But you’re sure I won’t be in the way? None of the other band members will be upset that you are bringing a random fan along on tour?”

“You’re not a random fan,” Blaine told him, straightening up and going over to the bed to grab up a few of his bags. “You’re...Kurt.” _Not smooth, Anderson. Not smooth. Do better._

“Right. I’m Kurt. Do you even know my last name?”

“Uh, no. But I would love to learn it on the bus! So, come with me, I’ll fill the guys in on what’s happening, and we’ll be on our way. It’s an almost two-hour drive from here to our venue, so we’ll have plenty of time to talk.” Blaine grinned at him, walking toward the door. He stuck his head out and talked to the security guys in the hallway before looking back over his shoulder. “You coming?”

Kurt nodded, rising from his chair and following Blaine to the door. “What’s the first stop on your tour?”

“Um…” Blaine laughed, giggling harder at Kurt’s confused look when he glanced at him. “We’re playing at a church…”

“What? You’re kidding,” Kurt said, stepping into the elevator behind Blaine.

“Nope,” the singer answered, popping the “P.” He shook his head, pressing the button for the lower floor. “I guess this is a super progressive church that regularly hosts concerts and stuff.” He shrugged. “I don’t make those decisions. Our agent does.”

Kurt was about to open his mouth and ask another question, but the elevator dinged just then, and they were walking out the door into the lobby. The rest of the bandmates were already gathered there, smiling and waving at those who gawked on their way out. At the sound of the elevator opening, all the bandmates turned in that direction, mouths open to greet Blaine, but the words died on their lips.

Blaine walked over, setting his few bags down and looking up at the group. “David and Trent are grabbing the rest of my stuff from my room; they should be down soon. But I wanted to talk to you guys about something.”

“What the hell is _he_ doing here?” Eli asked, pointing an accusing finger in Kurt’s direction, smiling when Kurt backed up just a bit, hunching his shoulders to make him look smaller.

“Shut the fuck up, Eli,” Blaine sighed, not even bothering to look at him. “Last night, before I left Marie’s, I invited Kurt to go along on tour with us, and he’s agreed. So, he’s coming along, at least for the first few stops. He’s only got those two bags, so he can store his stuff with mine. And, he can stay in my hotel room. He won’t be in the way, will you, Kurt?” He turned to the man in question.

“No. I won’t,” Kurt said, crossing his heart with a giant “X.” Then, he smiled. “Scouts honor.”

“I don’t have a problem with it,” Elliot spoke up. “Kurt’s a nice guy; I say he should tag along.”

Jeff, Nick, and Sebastian all nodded, murmuring their agreement. Eli, however, shook his head, a sour expression on his face.

“No way! No. No, he can’t come! If you start inviting nobodies along with us, pretty soon we’re going to have a caravan of fans! No way. He’s not part of the band!”

“First of all,” Blaine ground out, “Kurt is _not_ a nobody. Just like us, he’s a person. A very kind, interesting, and cute person.” _Shit! Did I really say that out loud?_ “And,” Blaine continued, pushing on despite his cheeks blushing ever so gently, “it’s not just up to you. We vote on it. So, if you’re outvoted, that’s just too bad.” He paused, looking at the other four boys. “All in favor of Kurt coming along?”

Around the circle, there were five raised hands.

“Well, that settles it,” Sebastian commented. “Welcome to the tour, Kurt.” He held out a hand, and Kurt took it in a light grip.

There was another ding of the elevator, and the band all looked behind them to see David and Trent, the two security guards who had met Kurt at the elevator earlier that morning, coming out with armloads of stuff. “Let’s get on the bus!” one of them hollered, and everyone picked up their bags and moved out of the hotel to the bus waiting outside.

It didn’t take long for everything to be packed away in the bus. Most of the equipment and other gear was stored below in the cargo carriage units. The guy’s clothes and laptops along with a few acoustic guitars were loaded up inside, and pretty soon they were heading down the road on their way to Philly.

Kurt could tell that Eli was pissed. In fact, he really seemed like he was mad at the world. He’d been nothing but rude to both David and Trent as they loaded the bus, he’d been a snot to Seb when asked where he’d like his acoustic guitar stored, and he was now sitting beside the window, his headphones in his ears, glaring across the bus in Kurt and Blaine’s direction.

Sebastian and Elliot had found a spot for themselves toward the back of the bus and were cuddled together, watching a movie while Jeff and Nick were dozing toward the front on an air mattress, curled into each other’s arms.

“What is his problem?” Kurt asked, jerking a thumb in Eli’s direction. “He’s been an asshole all day.”

“That would be my fault,” Blaine admitted, “and part of what I wanted to talk with you about. So, I guess we’re starting that conversation now?”

“I guess so,” Kurt agreed. “Sounds like there might be a lot of stuff to talk about.”

Blaine nodded, taking a deep breath and releasing it as a sigh. “So, I guess I should start from the beginning. I don’t know how much you know, but you’re only going to understand the here and now of the situation if I tell you all the details.”

“I’m all ears,” Kurt confirmed.

“Great. So, I don’t know how much you know about the history of the band, but we formed while we were at Dalton. So--”

“Just checking, do you remember that I told you I was attending Dalton, going into photography?” 

“Um, vaguely? I remember something about my brother being handsome.” Blaine scrunched up his nose. “You don’t have a crush on him, do you?”

Kurt couldn’t hold back a laugh at that. “No. You were the one that brought up how handsome he is, actually. Not me.”

“Oh…” Once again, Blaine found his cheeks coloring pink. _What is wrong with me? I don’t get embarrassed easily._ “You should probably know that I’m a lightweight when it comes to drinking. I get tipsy easily, and after that, my memory is crap.”

“If I need to tell you secrets,” Kurt said, giving him a sly smile, “I’ll be sure to get you liquored up first!”

They both had a good chuckle about that, then Blaine went on seriously. “Anyway, when we first formed and got famous off of that cover of _Teenage Dream_ I did for the Dalton Talent Show, we were all single and unattached. However, the more time we spent together, writing music and recording our songs, the more Elliot and Sebastian and Nick and Jeff realized they were falling for each other. As it turns out, they were soulmates, destined to be together once they figured out their feelings. So, those four have been paired off almost since the beginning, a few months in, actually, and that just left Eli and me on our own.”

_Please don’t tell me they were actually together…_ Kurt prayed as he listened to Blaine talk. _I’m not sure I can handle that._

“Well, Eli wasn’t handling that very well.” Blaine’s eyes flitted up to see if his bandmate was still watching them; he was. Leaning in closer, Blaine made sure his mouth was obscured from Eli’s view before he went on. “He tried dating other people off and on, both other stars and fans, but he didn’t like any of them well enough to stick it out. Eli’s bi, you know, and so eventually, he told our manager he thought it was a bad image for me, as the lead singer, not to be in a relationship.”

Kurt gasped, unable to hold back his surprise. _How manipulative!_ he thought.

Blaine nodded grimly. “Yeah. So, when our manager asked what he thought we should do about me being single, it was Eli’s idea for the two of us to date. I tried to say no, but Eli and our manager both insisted it would be good for our image if the group was made up entirely of couples.”

“Did they coerce you?” Kurt whispered, not trusting himself to keep from turning to Eli and shouting him down for being such an asshole.

“Not exactly, but I was definitely not excited,” Blaine admitted, diverting his eyes to look out the window as he spoke some more. “My manager promised that this was only for appearances and stories, that I would not have to pretend with him if we weren’t in public, but apparently Eli didn’t get the picture. What you saw him doing last night, calling me Blainey, hanging all over me, and kissing my cheek was what he normally did, even when we were alone, and I couldn’t stand it. Every time he did, I would tell him to quit, and it pissed him off. Last night, me not going back to the hotel with him and instead getting drinks with you was the last straw. He was waiting for me in my hotel room last night, and we got into a huge yelling match. He accused me of not loving him, and when I told him I never had, not as more than a friend, he told me he was quitting the band and left. Obviously, that didn’t happen because he’s here now, but because of him, I got no sleep last night.” _And, because of you, too,_ Blaine added in his head.

“That’s horrible,” Kurt breathed. “I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t be,” Blaine replied, sighing and looking back at Kurt. “Honestly, I was hoping he really _would_ quit the band. Things haven’t been easy, not even at the beginning. But he’s good at what he does, so we kept him around. It would be a lot easier, though, if we could find someone else...” He trailed off. “Anyway, that brings me to this morning. First of all, I didn’t remember inviting you along but secondly, I’ve gotten no sleep. Which is fine. I was just a little bit out of it when you called. How did--How did you get my number, anyway?”

Kurt chuckled. “Of course you don’t remember that, either. You sent yourself a text from my phone when we were leaving Marie’s. It said my name so you wouldn’t forget it and your hotel address.”

“Oh! That’s why that was on my phone when I got back to the hotel. I spent so long staring at it, wondering why I had the address of my hotel with someone else’s name attached to it.” He laughed. “I feel so dumb whenever something like this happens.”

“It’s okay,” Kurt replied. He wanted to ask, _Do you remember kissing my cheek before you left?_ But he decided it wasn’t the right time.

“So, how is it that someone who only packed for a few days in New York can come along on a 10-day tour with a band?”

“Well, because I gave it all up,” Kurt said softly. “I dropped my entire life in Ohio and made this my life for a while. I-- Well, it’s a lot to explain, but I needed to. For me.”

Blaine glanced at his watch. “I’ve got time. We’ve barely been on the road for 15 minutes.”

“Okay. I should warn you, though, that my backstory is kinda sad. So, don’t expect to giggle while I talk.”

“Stony-faced Blaine at your service,” the singer said, saluting him quickly.

Kurt smiled before clearing his throat and starting his story. “My dad died when I was little. I was eight, and he passed away from cancer. He was way too young, and-- Anyway, so since then, it’s just been me and my mom. She’s a preschool teacher, and the job never paid much, but she loves it. So, I was on my own a lot. Teachers don’t get to just go home when the bell rings like the kids, and I was home alone a lot once I was old enough to think hanging out in her Pre-K room was boring.” He chuckled. “So, when I graduated high school, I didn’t feel like I could leave Mom on her own. I’d been working and helping take care of the household as long as I could remember, and she hadn’t met anyone yet. So, when I got a full-ride scholarship to Dalton, I took it. My major was photography and my minor was music. I love music and always wanted to have a career in it but as a writer, not a performer. Music writing wasn’t one of the topics that Dalton offered under either music or creative writing, unfortunately.”

Blaine nodded in understanding. “Yes. I’ve been after Coop to tell the board to change that, but it doesn’t seem to matter.” He smiled apologetically. “Sorry. Go on.”

“So, photography was okay, and like I said last night, your brother was the one who introduced me to you and Warbler Attack. For the most part, things have been okay at Dalton. I’ve been accepting the challenges as they come, and it’s less horrible than high school was.” He pressed his lips into a line. “But I haven’t really been happy there. It’s not where I wanted to be or what I wanted to do. So, when you offered to let me come on tour, I had some serious thinking to do.”

The other man made a noise of agreement but didn’t interrupt this time.

“I realized after I thought about it that Mom has a new boyfriend now; she thinks he might be her second soulmate, her second chance at love, and her first relationship since my dad, so she doesn’t need me so much anymore. I can learn photography anywhere, and I wasn’t in love with my job. So, I just quit. I texted my mom, sent an email to the school, and told my boss that I was quitting. And, here I am.”

“Wow…” Blaine said softly. There was admiration in his eyes. “It takes a strong person to be able to do that, to give up what they know for a chance that something they’ve been offered might be better.”

Kurt blushed. “Well, I don’t know about that…”

“It’s true!” Blaine said firmly. “You don’t know how much I admire your bravery. I’m not sure I could do something like that, give up my entire life for a maybe.”

“But you did, didn’t you? I mean, there was no guarantee you’d be big after that cover. People become famous for one small thing all the time, but sometimes, it doesn’t grow past that. So, you left school two years before you graduated with a few friends to try to write songs that would capture the world. You had no promise you’d be successful. But look at you.”

“Yeah… I guess you’re right.”

Kurt reached out a hand to lay it gently on top of Blaine’s. “I’m sure that, when no one treats you like a human with feelings, it’s hard to remember you’re brave, that your story is astounding. But it is. And, I wanted to say I’m sorry for treating you like anything other than the breathtaking, amazing man that you are. I’m sure that hurt you, and I wanted to be sure you knew I didn’t mean anything by it.”

“No need to apologize,” Blaine told him, moving his hand to brush his thumb lightly over the top of Kurt’s. “It happens all the time. I’m used to it.”

“All the more reason to tell you that I’m going to do better,” Kurt assured him. He took a deep breath. “If I tell you something, will you promise not to judge me or think less of me?”

“No. I mean, not if you’re going to tell me that you have secretly been stalking me or something crazy like that. But if it’s anything else, I’ll do my best.”

“Okay.” Reaching down to the backpack Kurt had insisted he keep with him on the bus, he pulled out a small envelope and one of his notebooks, the one he knew contained a few songs he’d written for Blaine to sing. He thought he could hear a tiny noise of disappointment as his hand moved away from Blaine’s but he didn’t comment. Instead, he said, “I want to tell you something that I’ve never breathed to another living soul. It’s kinda embarrassing, but I feel like you deserve to know if I’m going to be hanging out with you for a while.”

“Okay…” Blaine answered, looking nervous. _Maybe he is a stalker?_

“Ever since Mr. Anderson\--your brother. You know, it’s so weird for me to hear you call him ‘Coop’--introduced me to Warbler Attack, I haven’t been able to get enough of you. In fact, I would say that you were kind of an obsession of mine. I think I’ve watched every interview you’ve ever done, listened to every song you’ve ever sung, and… Well, let’s just say I felt drawn to you, and I had nowhere else to put that passion than into following your public life.” He scooted the envelope across the table toward Blaine. “You were the subject of my final project for one of my photography classes last semester.” He nodded toward the envelope. “That’s what’s in there. You don’t have to open it.”

“Well, now I have to. You’ve got me intrigued,” Blaine said, opening the envelope and sliding the pictures out. He thumbed through them, looking at each one carefully. When he was done, he set them down again, grinning at Kurt across the table. “Those are really good. If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were there at all those events and captured each of those moments yourself.”

“How do you know I wasn’t?” Kurt sassed.

“Because I would remember a face as beautiful as yours.”

There was silence between them for a moment, neither sure that they had heard that sentence right. Blaine, taking the silence as uncomfortable, wished he could take the sentiment back, but Kurt was busy wondering what in the world could make a rockstar think that _he_ was beautiful.

“Thanks,” Kurt finally whispered, giving him a small smile.

Blaine felt the air leave his lungs, and he nodded. “These are really good, though, Kurt. Like, amazing. You have a gift for photography, and I’m honored to have been your subject.” 

Kurt didn’t reply to that. Instead, he went on with what he’d been telling Blaine as he opened the notebook, looking for one of the songs he’d written for him. “Going to your Legends Festival was one of my dreams from the first moment you announced the first one,” he confided in Blaine. “I wanted to go every year, but the timing was off for the first two. When I figured out I could go this year, I was over the moon, though. And because I wanted to spend my every moment in New York soaking up the culture and putting it into songwriting, I packed a bunch of my songwriting notebooks to bring along.” He patted the one he had opened lightly before looking up to meet Blaine’s eyes. “Now, you might call me silly, but whenever I finish a song that I’m really happy with, I write down who I would like to sing it in the margins. As I’m sure you can guess, a lot of these are for you, and I wanted to show you one.” He passed the notebook over, open to a page that contained lyrics for Blaine. When he pulled back, he discovered that his fingers were trembling with nerves.

Scanning the page quickly, Blaine read through the lyrics, pleasantly surprised when he reached the end. He read the words again, a bit slower this time, and when he finally looked up at Kurt again, there was that look of awe dancing there once again. “Kurt…” he whispered so softly, his name rolling reverently off his tongue. “I don’t even have words. These are beautiful…”

“Do you--Do you really like them?” Kurt stuttered, unwilling to believe what he was hearing. _The_ Blaine Anderson had just complimented his writing skills. _Is this even my real life?_

“I really, really do,” Blaine replied, nodding. “I would be honored to sing something like that, something so beautiful.” _They’re almost as perfect as you._

“Thanks,” Kurt whispered, putting his notebook and photos back into his backpack. When he looked back at Blaine, there were tears shining in his eyes.

“What’s the matter?” Blaine asked, his mind racing to think of anything he could have said to upset the other man.

“I just can’t believe this is really happening,” Kurt replied, his voice wavering and cracking. “For so long, I dreamed of getting out of Ohio and following my dream, and now that I’m actually working toward that with _you_ of all people, I just…”

Blaine didn’t know quite what to say. He hated to see Kurt cry, even if it was tears of happiness or relief falling like rain down his face. He surprised himself by asking, “Can I hug you?”

“I-I’d like that.”

The two of them rose, and Kurt rounded the table, allowing Blaine to pull him into a hug. It was as their chests met and their arms enveloped one another that they felt a tiny burning sensation in their wrists, very near their matching soulmarks. The spark tingled up their arms, across their shoulders, and to their chests, making their hearts beat in one rhythm as they pressed against one another, seeking comfort and understanding. 

To the two of them, it felt as though they were locking together like puzzle pieces, their hearts pumping all their confusion and adoration for the other into the world leaving only one word pounding through their heads: love.

When they finally pulled away, they just looked at one another for a moment, wondering if the other had felt what they themselves had just experienced during that hug. Neither seemed to have words for what they had felt, so neither spoke. They just looked, communicating with their eyes. 

"Shall we--" Kurt began, pausing. "Shall we sit back down?"

Blaine nodded. "I think we should."

They both returned to their chairs, their hands finding one another across the table as though their nerve endings were guiding them back together again, unwilling to be separated for long. Quiet surrounded them again, neither sure what to say. They were just caught up in feeling. 

Finally, Kurt broke the silence, lifting his head to meet Blaine's eyes, tearing his gaze from their hands. "I have to ask you something," he said softly, so softly Blaine had to sit forward a bit more in his chair. 

He nodded. "Okay."

"Do you remember last night, when we were leaving Marie's, that you kissed my cheek?"

"No," Blaine answered honestly. "But I know why I would."

Kurt tilted his head a bit but didn't say anything. 

"You…" Blaine trailed off, not exactly sure how to say what he was feeling. "You've touched something inside of me that I didn't know was there. You've brushed against something that's woken me up, and I feel like I'm seeing my world for the first time. And, in a way, I am. Because I can't explain it, but--" He stopped, reaching out his other hand to rest lightly against Kurt's jaw. "I don't want to scare you away. We've only just met, and I know that this sounds improbable… But ever since you showed up at my door this morning, it's kind of felt like you're becoming my world."

Kurt's breathing hitched. _Is--Did he--?_

When Kurt didn't say anything, Blaine withdrew a bit, beginning to pull his hand away from Kurt's. "I knew I shouldn't have said that. I scared you…"

"No! Not at all! It's just… I've been feeling exactly the same, like the air between us shifted this morning, and I couldn't figure it out until you said it. It's like waking up, and all I'm seeing is you." He sighed. "I'm so glad you had the words."

Blaine nodded, tightening his grip on Kurt's hand again. 

"Did you… When we hugged, there was a burning by-by my soulmark. Did--"

"Yeah."

"Should we?"

Blaine nodded again. 

Cautiously, they both rolled up their sleeves the tiniest bit, their eyes drifting down to their wrists. There, just beside their soulmarks, were the faintest outlines of hearts, barely-there against their skin. 

"Could it--"

"Are we--"

They spoke at the same time then looked up at one another with wide eyes. 

"We can't tell anyone," Blaine whispered. "Not yet. Not until these are…"

"I know. Proof," Kurt whispered. "This is all I need for now."

"Me, too."

They spent the next several moments just touching, feeling, and thinking, exploring this unexpected connection between the two of them. 

After a bit, however, Blaine yawned widely. 

“I think you should take a nap,” Kurt informed him. “You didn’t sleep last night, and you’ve got a gig tonight. You should rest.”

“I-I will,” Blaine agreed. Casting a glance over Kurt’s shoulder, he found that Eli had put his hood up and over his head. His eyes were closed, and his chest was rising and falling evenly. Looking back at Kurt, Blaine managed to stutter out, “D-do you think I c-could kiss you?”

Kurt nodded. “I’d like that.”

Rising again, the two of them wrapped one another in a hug, Kurt’s arms falling naturally over Blaine’s shoulders, and Blaine’s arms wrapping around Kurt’s waist as if they belonged like that. Then, their lips pressed together gently, tentatively, and they tasted one another for the first time, that tiny burn they had felt during their first hug reigniting in their wrists and running its course to their lips this time, filling the whole kiss with electricity.

It lasted only a few moments before they pulled back, looking at one another breathlessly.

“I-I think I’ll just go lie down,” Blaine whispered.

“Sleep well,” Kurt replied. 

***

That evening, as Kurt sat backstage and watched Warbler Attack perform for a crowd of 1500 people in the First Unitarian Church of Philadelphia, his mind wasn’t on their music or how amazing it was to be backstage, watching his favorite band that he’d only just managed to meet for the first time the night before. 

His mind was, instead, on his first real kiss, that powerful, healing hug he’d shared with Blaine, and that tiny heart that was ever so faintly beginning to show on his skin. He didn’t know what it could all mean, how so quickly he could have gone from an unknown Ohio man to the soulmate of a rockstar, but he wasn’t about to question Fate.

The whole thing made him nervous, though. How would the band react? Elliot, Sebastian, Nick, and Jeff had, apparently, already found their soulmates in one another; they’d probably be overjoyed for them. What would Eli think? Their manager that Kurt had yet to meet? The media? All these things made him nervous, and the longer he thought about it, the more the anxiety and instability of the whole situation made a lump grow in his stomach.

Sitting back in the little chair he’d been given backstage, Kurt vowed to talk to Blaine about it all when they had some time alone later. For now, he was going to sit back, enjoy the show, and watch the magic that was his soulmate win over the crowds that had gathered to watch him sing.


	8. Chapter 7: I'm So Dizzy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today’s song: Always by Paul McCartney  
> Lyric inspiration:  
> “Days may not be fair always  
> That’s when I’ll be there always  
> Not for just an hour  
> Not for just a day  
> Not for just a year  
> But always.”

That evening, after everything had been cleaned up and the group of musicians was standing together in a small circle, discussing their set and what they’d like to change in the future, Kurt--who’d been standing off to the side, doing his best to stay out of the way--approached them tentatively, placing a hand lightly on Blaine’s shoulder so as not to disturb the man. He just wanted to let him know he was there.

“Go the hell away!” Eli ordered as soon as he saw him standing there. “This meeting is for band members only. You certainly are _not_ part of that.”

There was a collective groan from around the circle and a reverberating, “Shut the fuck up, Eli!” before Blaine turned to face Kurt. 

“What’s up?” he mumbled. “We’re almost done here, and then I want to go straight back to the hotel.”

“That’s fine. I-I didn’t mean to interrupt. I just wanted to ask if we could go somewhere private later. I really need to talk to you.”

“You’re staying in my room tonight, so we can talk there?” Blaine offered, giving him a small smile. He actually had something he wanted to ask Kurt about as well, so that would be perfect. 

“Okay,” Kurt replied, smiling back. “I’ll, um, I’ll just go wait over here until you’re done.”

“No. You can stay. Eli doesn’t make our decisions for us.” Blaine glanced around at the other four boys to be sure they didn’t mind, and no one made a move to send him away. So, Blaine pulled him a little bit closer as he looked around the group. “So, as we were saying, we need to find a different closing song for our next set. Not enough of our fans were into _Ride_ for me to be comfortable with continuing with it there. We could move it up. And, I want to move _Teenage Dream_ from second to last to three or four numbers before our last song.”

“So, are you just going to point out the problems, or are you going to find some solutions?” Eli grouched. 

“For tonight, no one is coming up with any solutions. I’m dead tired and want to go back to the hotel.” He eyed Eli meaningfully, hoping the rest of the group picked up on his silent communication. “So, you all can go over to that little pub you were talking about, but Kurt and I are heading to the hotel.”

“Are you guys like a thing or something?” Eli asked. “He’s like a leech on you.”

“Shut the fuck up,” Blaine told him, grabbing Kurt’s arm and guiding him away as the rest of the group forced Eli to calm down. “Ignore him,” he told Kurt. “He’s just trying to be an ass.”

“It would seem that’s what he’s always trying to do,” Kurt commented as the two of them made their way outside.

“You’ve got him pegged!” Stepping up onto the first stair of their tour bus, Blaine turned toward him. “I’ve just got to grab a couple of things. Then, there’s a car waiting to take us to our hotel. Do you need anything off the bus?”

“My bags,” Kurt said, following him up.

It wasn’t long before the two of them were pulling up to the rear entrance of the hotel. Their security guys had already come and checked in for them, and Blaine learned from his driver that David was already standing outside his hotel room door, 452, to let them in.

Despite being absolutely exhausted, Blaine insisted that they take the stairs up to the fourth floor to avoid being seen as much as possible. He didn’t want to be caught in the hallway taking photos which had apparently happened in the past. 

When David opened the door to their room, Blaine immediately dropped his bags and flung himself onto the bed, spreading out like a starfish, arms and legs dangling in every direction. “Oh my God, that feels good,” he mumbled into the mattress. “You should come lay down, too.”

Being far gentler than Blaine, Kurt set his bags down by the door and came to perch tentatively on the edge of the bed with Blaine. 

“Lay down. Lay down,” the singer urged, tugging on Kurt’s arm. He made a happy little noise when Kurt complied, leaning back against the pillows. Blaine immediately scrambled up the bed to lean into his side, resting his head against his shoulder and wrapping an arm loosely across his stomach. He sighed happily. “I could fall asleep right here.”

Kurt smiled down at him, running one hand gently through his messy curls. He didn’t even mind that Blaine had been a sweaty mess earlier. He liked the feel of his hair against his fingertips, and if the happy little humming sounds coming from the other man were any indication, so did Blaine. “Can we talk now?” Kurt asked gently after a few minutes of petting.

“What’s up?”

“Well, while I was backstage at your show, I was… Well, I was kinda wondering… What’s everyone going to think when they find out what happened between us today? You know the little hearts starting to show up by our soulmarks that probably mean we’re…” He didn’t say the word. It was too sacred yet, too new for just throwing the word around willy nilly. It was silly, he knew, because if a heart started showing on your skin, right next to your soulmark, the two of you were destined, meant to be. There was really no point to avoiding it, but neither of them seemed comfortable with admitting exactly what they were to one another. Not quite yet.

“Who exactly are you worried about? The guys won’t mind, an--”

“Not even Eli? He seems pissed that I’m even around.”

“That’s actually...There was something I wanted to talk to you about,” Blaine told him, twisting himself around a little bit so he could make eye contact with Kurt while still keeping his ear over his chest. “Do you play an instrument?”

“I play a little bit of piano, but I mostly play guitar. Why?”

“Well," Blaine snorted, "that’s actually a lot more perfect than I thought.”

“What is?”

“Well, if Eli leaves the band, you could join and be our bassist.”

Kurt just gave Blaine a blank stare. “What?”

“Didn’t you hear me?” he asked, sitting up a little bit straighter. “You could be our bassist if Eli leaves the band. You could take his spot and be part of Warbler Attack. Wouldn’t that be awesome?”

Unable to say anything, Kurt just looked away, tears beginning to form in the corners of his eyes. 

“Did I say something wrong?” Blaine asked. “Don’t you want to be in the band?”

“It’s not that,” Kurt managed to get out, his voice cracking. “It’s not you.”

“Then…?”

“It’s dumb.”

“Not if it’s making you cry. Please tell me?”

Kurt nodded, taking his time to wipe his face free of tears and sniff away all the snot that was threatening to leave his nose. Then, he glanced down at Blaine’s worried face, which was hovering just above his shoulder now, and giggled, the sound wet and dampened by his tears. “You don’t have to be so worried, you know,” he pointed out.

“You were crying after I gave you what I thought would be good news! I’m _very_ worried.”

“Well, don’t,” Kurt said, gently pressing on Blaine’s head to get him relaxing against him once again. “It was nothing serious. Just… I don’t think you can completely wrap your mind around how an offer like that makes me feel. Remember that two days ago--hell, even yesterday--I was just an overly obsessed fan. I didn’t have an in with the lead singer, and I was swaying in the GA section of the Legends Festival while my best friend was making out with her soulmate by the porta-potties.”

“Um, gross! That’s a terrible place to kiss.”

“Well, Brittany has her eccentricities, but I love her. Anyway, less than 48 hours ago, I was just a fan of Warbler Attack, and now I’m sitting on the lead singer’s bed, cuddling with him, and being invited to join the group. It’s just… It’s better than anything I could have ever dreamed up and so crazy that it’s happening to _me_ of all people.”

“Why shouldn’t it happen to you? You’re amazing. You deserve the world, Kurt. Truly.”

“Thanks,” he answered honestly. “That’s sweet. You’ll have to forgive me, though. It’s going to take some time for me to accept that. I did just come from the middle of Ohio, you know. Not the easiest row to hoe for a gay boy.”

“You don’t have to tell me! I was there, too.”

“I know. But you got out; you made something of yourself. You’re used to other things now, and I’m not there yet.”

“You’re cute, Kurt-- Um, what’s your last name?”

“Hummel. I’m Kurt Elizabeth Hummel.”

“Pretty. Elizabeth fits you.”

“That’s my mother’s name.”

“I love getting to know you. And, I love getting to surprise you, to show you that you’re worthy of finding and fulfilling your dreams, even if you don’t know it yet.”

“Doesn’t that just make me naive?”

“No. Cute. And, I’m going to very happily nurture that cuteness in you until it grows into...something else. Because you deserve it, and I want to watch you grow.” Blaine shook his head, chuckling. “I should not be talking; I’m exhausted, and I can’t word.”

“Do you think you could hold out for just a few more minutes?” Kurt asked. “We never really got to talk about my question.”

“For you, I’ll stay awake all night,” Blaine told him. _In fact, I already did._

“So, you think Eli will take it okay? Will he leave? What about your manager and the public? How will we tell them? Will they accept it?”

“Well, that’s a lot to worry about at once,” Blaine said softly, meeting Kurt’s gaze and giving him a reassuring squeeze around his middle. “So, why don’t you let me tell you how I was imagining we’d handle this. In a few days, when we know for _sure_ that this is really happening, and we can see our hearts just a little bit clearer, we’ll tell the band. If I know the guys--and I think I do pretty well by now--the four of them will be ecstatic, and Eli will want to banish me from the group. In the end, he’ll wind up leaving, we’ll adopt you as our bassist, and then we’ll tell the manager. There can be an interview scheduled for our new band member, and everyone will get to see how perfect you are and love you, no assistance required.” He beamed up at Kurt.

“Okay… Well…” Kurt breathed deeply, doing his best to focus. The words he wanted to say were meshing with the things he was feeling, and he had to take them back apart again, separate them into what needed to be said and what could be alleviated by the information he was seeking. As he concentrated, his eyes drifted shut, and he felt Blaine begin to trace little nonsense lines and patterns across his stomach as he waited.

When he was finally able to concentrate again and think clearly, Kurt opened his eyes. “Something you should know about me,” he said, his voice low, “is that I’m kind of a worrywart. I spend a lot of time thinking about what could be coming next and a whole lot less time enjoying where I am. It’s something I’m working on, but I haven’t mastered the skill yet.”

“I can help,” Blaine told him, moving so he could meet Kurt’s gaze again. “All you have to do is let me know when something is bothering you, and I’ll do my best to help you through it so you can enjoy your life. Because you deserve that, Kurt. You deserve happiness and joy in your life. I know I don’t know much yet about who you were before I met you yesterday, but I get the sense that you’ve spent a lot of your life going through the motions. I don’t think you’ve spent so much time living, and Kurt, someone as amazing as you deserves to really and truly _live._ ”

“Thank you.”

Blaine didn’t respond other than to smile at him gently. Then, he waited for Kurt to say whatever he needed to get off of his chest.

“What you proposed sounds nice,” Kurt told him, going back to that place in his mind where he had everything he wanted to talk through patiently waiting in a queue for him to choose them. “It sounds smooth and simple, but what if it doesn’t go that way? What will we do if Eli doesn’t want to leave?”

“Well, as I know you’ve already witnessed, Warbler Attack isn’t controlled by any one person. We take a vote on everything, even stuff that’s not controversial. So, while they would just have to accept you as you are because of…” He held up his wrist in lieu of saying it. “We would vote if you were going to join the band or if Eli was going to leave. Trust me when I say this, Kurt, because I don’t want you to get the wrong idea: Eli leaving was on the table before I ever met you.Like I said on the bus, we kept him around because we needed his bass skills, not because we loved him being part of the band.”

Kurt wasn’t sure what to say. “They could just take a vote and get rid of him?” he asked, making sure he understood. “And, if I were to join in his place, would they vote? Could they vote me out later?”

“I think we’re getting ahead of ourselves,” Blaine soothed, going back to tracing patterns on Kurt’s stomach. This time, however, he left his fingers dip below the hem of Kurt’s shirt, grazing lightly over his soft skin before coming back out to trace safely on top of his shirt. “Why don’t we do this? When we feel comfortable, we’ll tell the guys we’re together. Then, if Eli reacts badly, we can discuss making a change at that point. But until the rest of the band knows about you and me, there’s nothing much that’s going to change, at least not while we’re on tour.”

“Okay,” Kurt mumbled. He did feel better; that just wasn’t the rock-solid reassurance he was hoping to get.

“Now, as far as my manager or the media finding out about us? One way or another, they will know that we’re a couple someday, even if you never join the band. A lot of people will love you, Kurt. What is there about you that they shouldn’t love? But despite everyone that loves you, there will be those that don’t. They’ll hate you because of jealousy, mostly, but there will always be someone that decides it’s their job to let you know that you don’t fit the mold of who they wanted to be with me.” He sighed, this time sitting up so he could face Kurt fully and take both his hands in his.

“I’m not saying we will have an easy road ahead of us,” Blaine told him. “And, if I could go back and know that, all those years ago when I was starting a band in the middle of Ohio, my soulmate was just a few miles away from me, I would have come to knock on your bedroom window and ask you if it was okay, if you would be comfortable living in the spotlight. Or, at least, very near it. But as Fate would have us do, we were destined to meet in New York, not in Ohio, and we can’t change my past or what I’ve become.”

“I don’t want to change that,” Kurt rushed to reassure him. 

“So, together, we’ll figure it out,” Blaine finished. “We’ll take it one step at a time, and I’ll do what I can to show you the ropes. And, if at some point in our futures, however that looks, you decide that living a life where everyone, at the very least, knows you exist, well… I don’t know that I’ll be able to erase that, but damn would I try. I would do anything for you, Kurt. Anything at all.”

“Oh, Blaine,” Kurt whispered, leaning in to press a tiny, chaste kiss to his lips. “How have I lived my whole life without you?” His lips were mere centimeters from Blaine’s, and they leaned into each other as they did their best to stabilize one another.

“Never again,” Blaine promised. “Never without one another again.”

They stayed like that for a few more long moments before pulling back. Baine immediately yawned widely. 

“We can go to bed now,” Kurt told him. “I’m ready.”

“Me, too,” Blaine replied, rolling off the bed and dragging himself into the bathroom to change. He came out a few minutes later and collapsed on the bed again, sighing happily.

Kurt giggled before making his way to the bathroom to change and brush his teeth. When he emerged, he headed for the chair in the corner of the room, settling down into it and leaning his backpack up against the side. _That way it’s handy if I wake up in the middle of the night and need something to do._

Blaine lifted his head just a bit and frowned at Kurt. “What are you doing?”

“Getting ready to sleep?”

“In the chair?”

“Yeah? Where else would I sleep?”

“Maybe the bed?” Blaine ventured. “Since that is where one normally sleeps.”

“Um...then where would you sleep?”

“Also in the bed.”

“So, you want to sleep together?”

Blaine sighed. “I hate the stigma that that phrase has, ‘sleep together.’ Yeah, I wanna share a bed with you, but I don’t expect to wake up in the middle of the night and have my way with you.” _Though I might have to do something about myself in the morning, because I have the feeling I’m not going to be able to keep my body from reacting_ very _positively to his body._

“Is that what you really want?” Kurt asked. “For me to sleep in the bed with you?”

“Well, I can’t imagine that the chair is particularly comfortable, and since we’re… You know… It would make sense that we could do that.”

Kurt just sat there for a moment, not speaking, not moving. He wasn’t sure what to do. On one hand, he would love to sleep next to Blaine. He couldn’t deny that the singer’s presence was soothing and comforting to him, especially now that he had a tiny imprint of a heart on his arm. And, he definitely couldn’t deny how insanely attractive he found Blaine, how wonderful it would be to have his arms around him as he slept. Still, he’d never shared a bed with anyone before. What if he snored? What if he kicked? He had no idea, but the way Blaine’s eyes were staring at him, almost pleading with him to get up and climb beneath the covers, his fears were nearly melted away. “Fine,” he said quietly, getting up to come and lay next to him. “I suppose we can share the bed.”

Blaine smiled at him with sleepy eyes, watching as Kurt, dressed in his gray sweatpants and--embarrassingly--a Warbler Attack t-shirt, padded over to the bed and climbed in. Immediately, Blaine pressed himself up against Kurt, laying his head on his shoulder again, just as he’d done earlier. “This okay?” he mumbled, already half asleep.

“It’s fine,” Kurt assured, petting his head for a moment before reaching over to switch off the bedside lamp. “Go to sleep.”

“Night…”

“Good night, Blaine.” Kurt didn’t fall asleep right away. Despite being completely tired, he kept thinking about how wonderful Blaine was, how sweet, caring, and understanding he was of what he’d been thinking and feeling. He played with his hair and listened to him breathing deeply, snoring ever so slightly against him, his body heavy with exhaustion. It had been an overwhelming and emotional few days.

As he lay awake, a song began to play in his head, one he hadn’t listened to for a long time:

“ _Days may not be fair always_

_That’s when I’ll be there always_

_Not for just an hour_

_Not for just a day_

_Not for just a year_

_But always.”_

  
_I’m so relieved that this is forever,_ he thought to himself as he let his eyes drift shut. _I can’t imagine leaving him for an hour, a day, a year and not missing everything he gives to me. He’s so perfect in every way. Thank you, whoever is out there. I didn’t know I needed him, but you did. So, thank you._


	9. Chapter 8: My Worst Distraction

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's song: Grow As We Go by Ben Platt  
> Lyric inspiration: the entire song

The next morning, when Kurt woke up, he realized quickly that he had, in fact, been a pillow the entire night. Blaine was still asleep, his forehead and curls damp with sweat from their combined body heat, and he had his arms and legs wrapped tightly around Kurt like a tiny koala would hug a eucalyptus branch. Kurt smiled down at him and reached up a hand, beginning to pet at his curls once again, combing through them gently. Then, he started a new pattern, running his fingertips gently along Blaine’s jawline, past his ear, and up through his hair.

A few minutes later, Blaine began to stir, making tiny moaning sounds as he stretched.

Kurt stopped petting him, and Blaine whined, cuddling back into him again. 

"Why'd you stop?" he mumbled. "Liked that."

"I can keep going," Kurt offered, returning his hand to the side of Blaine’s face. He petted as he had been for a few minutes before letting his fingers dive deeper into his hair, scratching at his scalp on every pass as well as trailing further down his face to his Adam's apple and back up once again.

Blaine, who had been humming softly at the pets, moaned loudly when he felt him move closer to his scalp. "Ohhhhhhhh my God… That's amazing, Kurt."

"I'm glad you like it."

In response, Blaine turned his head just a little, pressing kisses against Kurt's chest, over his shirt. He never kissed the same spot twice, and the more Kurt petted, the higher up he moved, soon pressing kisses against the collar of Kurt's T-shirt, then against his bare collar bone, and eventually his neck.

When the kissing became too much, Kurt let his hand drop away from Blaine’s curls and instead cup his cheek, his fingertips curling behind his ear, drawing him up his neck and across his jawline to his lips. They kissed one another for several minutes, lips and tongues exploring and finding new ways to love one another, discovering how the other tasted, how their mouth felt against their own. Of course, the answer for both of them was _heaven._ _Perfect_. _Exactly what I’ve been looking for_.

They pulled back when they were both short of breath, and they just stared at one another for a few moments, processing what had just happened. “You are an amazing kisser, Kurt,” Blaine breathed when he felt like he could speak again. “You’re like a magician.”

Kurt blushed brightly. “Thanks. I, uh, I’ve never really done that before.”

Blane’s eyes grew wide. “You’ve never made out before?”

“No. I’ve never--at least not formally anyway--had a boyfriend to, uh, to make out with.”

“How could anyone _not_ want you?”

“Just not that attractive I guess.”

“No. That’s not it. You’re perfect, Kurt. Absolutely breathtaking and sexier than any other man I’ve seen.”

_Apparently, this blush is never going away._ “Thanks,” he said again.

Blaine beamed. “Welcome. Now, I’m going to go and brush my teeth. I’m sure my morning breath is terrible.”

Kurt watched him go, not commenting even though he wanted to. _I think you tasted perfect; I didn’t even give a second thought to the fact we both just woke up._

When Blaine was finished in the bathroom, Kurt took his turn, using a bit of mouthwash, too, and applying a quick moisturizer to his face. When he emerged, he found Blaine sitting on the edge of the bed, fiddling with his phone. “What do we have going on today?” Kurt asked curiously, going to his own side of the bed and grabbing his phone.

“Well, we have the day off. We’re driving to Baltimore, Maryland, today because that’s where our next gig is, but it’s not until tomorrow. So, basically, we have the day to goof off.” He grinned. “We get to play 8X10 tomorrow. Have you ever heard of it?”

“No. But I’m excited to go.” He hesitated, not sure if he wanted to show Blaine just how nerdy he was. Glancing down at his hands, however, he saw the small heart forming beside his soulmark, and he bucked up the courage. “Blaine?”

“Yeah.”

“When we get up tomorrow, can we sing _Good Morning, Baltimore_?”

“I wouldn’t miss it.”

Kurt didn’t hold back his biggest cheesy smile at that, glad that Blaine was on board, too. “When do we leave?”

Glancing at the clock, Blaine said, “In like an hour and a half, I think. We have to be out by checkout time.”

“Gotcha.”

“Wanna go get coffee?” Blaine asked. “Somewhere that’s not the lobby? I can’t stand hotel coffee, even at The Four Seasons.”

“Sure,” Kurt replied. “Just let me change.”

The boys had a nice morning together. They found a Starbucks nearby and got coffees then walked around, just chatting and enjoying the beautiful morning. It was still chilly, but with coffee heating their hands and warm jackets on, they were fine. David trailed them all morning, but they didn’t mind. They felt safe that way, and he was far enough back that they were still on their own.

Arriving back at the hotel, the boys had just enough time to pack up their bags and head back down to the bus before it was time to go. The drive to Baltimore was about as long as the drive between New York and Pittsburgh, and the time passed quickly. The two of them played a Broadway board game with Nick, Jeff, and Sebastian. Elliot begged off, saying he was going to work on some lyrics for a song idea he’d had the night before, and Eli refused to play if Kurt was involved. So, he sat by the window once again, earbuds firmly in his ears, and sulked. It was a fun time, and Kurt got to know a few of the other bandmates who were really quite nice, not that he’d expected anything else.

They arrived at their new hotel in the early afternoon, and they were quickly checked in by security before they were permitted to go to their rooms. Once again, Kurt and Blaine roomed together, and once again, there was only one bed. But Kurt didn’t feel weird about it this time. In fact, he was looking forward to another night of snuggling with Blaine, getting to touch him, and listening to him breathe. He was getting used to the closeness with Blaine, actually. In fact, he craved it.

The afternoon passed quickly as well. Blaine had an acoustic guitar brought up to their room, and he practiced some songs from the band’s set for a while. Kurt sat in the chair in the corner of the room and watched him, a notebook and pencil in his lap. He’d told Blaine that he was going to work on his lyrics, but so far, he hadn’t written a word. He was too distracted by the perfect voice coming from the man across the room.

At seven, the band and Kurt met their manager in one of the hotel’s party rooms for a meeting and pizza. As they went down the elevator to the lowest level of the hotel, Blaine prepped Kurt for meeting their manager, William Schuester.

“Honestly, I think he’s a good dude. He just makes some poor choices sometimes,” Blaine told him. “And, he’s not always the most open-minded. Like, he supports all of us being gay and has no problem with it, but he’s…” Blaine paused. “I think 'not open-minded' is maybe the best way to describe it.”

Kurt nodded. He was a little bit nervous about meeting the man, but it had to be done. Sooner rather than later, actually, would probably be the best. He and Blaine appeared like they might be...well, stuck with one another. And, Blaine needed to tell William about his “breakup” with Eli. Kurt knew that, even though Blaine wasn’t saying it, he was nervous to tell Will about it. So, he was determined to stay close to Blaine for the evening to help to keep him calm. 

When they left the elevator, they heard a voice behind them. “My God. Are the two of you like fucking glued together? Why can’t you be separated for even a second?”

“I swear I’m going to go off tonight. I _swear…_ ” Blaine muttered under his breath, his fists clenching at his sides. 

Kurt rubbed a soothing hand up and down Blaine’s arm. “It’s okay,” he murmured. “He doesn’t bother me.” _That’s a lie. But Blaine doesn’t need to get himself in trouble right now._

“You’re a better man than me then," Blane breathed. He threw open the door to the meeting room and stalked inside, not even bothering to greet the rest of the band or their manager. He walked across the room and sat down in a chair, patting the one next to him for Kurt.

“Just gonna ignore me?” Eli asked, walking into the room behind them. “I mean, I asked you a fucking question. The least you could do is answer me.”

“Eli,” Nick warned him, raising a brow. “Don’t start a fucking fight right now. We’re supposed to be celebrating the success of the Legends Festival, not arguing over Kurt!”

“So, that’s your name,” the manager said, approaching the end of the table where Kurt was sitting. “What are you doing here?”

“I’ll explain everything in a few minutes,” Blaine said shortly. “First, though, I want to talk about something else.” 

“Which is?”

Blaine looked around the table at the rest of the band. “All in favor of kicking Eli out of the band?”

The other four boys stared at him, unsure if he was kidding or not. “Um…”

“No. No. That is not a conversation we’re having,” Will declared. “We’ve been over this. We’re not kicking _anyone_ out of the group. You’re all in this together.” He turned around, sure that this was over. Grabbing the pizza boxes that were on a small table behind him, along with the plates and napkins, Will slapped them down on the table. “Eat up, boys.” He turned to Kurt with a smile. “Even though I still don’t know why you’re here, I’m sure there’s enough for you, too.”

Everyone grabbed their pizza and some drinks, and there was small talk around the table as everyone ate. Will kept eyeing Kurt, but the boy ignored him in favor of chatting softly with Blaine and answering some of the questions Nick and Jeff asked him. 

When it seemed that everyone was finished eating, Will grabbed a notebook and pen that he produced from a chair and set them on the table. “Okay, boys. Let’s get down to business. Let’s talk Legends Festival.”

“First, you need to find out why he’s here,” Eli said, pointing across the table at Kurt. “I think it’s pretty suspicious that he just showed up out of nowhere and is hanging all over Blaine. I suspect blackmail.”

Everyone at the table rolled their eyes. “I can promise you,” Sebastian said dryly, “there’s no blackmail.”

“How can you be sure?”

All eyes turned to Blaine, and he sighed heavily.

Under the table, Kurt grabbed onto Blaine’s hand. He squeezed it a few times reassuringly as if to say, “You can do this.”

Blaine glanced at him, giving him a tiny smile before turning back to face Will. “The first thing that you should know, Will, is that the farce between me and Eli is over. We’re not fake dating; we’re not pretending anymore. I’m done with that.”

“But-”

“No. That’s it. As far as why Kurt is here, I invited him. He’s a really sweet guy. We spent hours talking at Marie’s after the Legends Festival, and he was just an absolute sweetheart. He’s from the same place I was pre-fame, he’s had my brother as a professor at Dalton, and he’s interested in writing and creating music.” _Plus, he’s my fucking soulmate. Back off, Eli._

“So…” Will began, unsure of the best way to ask the question he wanted to ask. “So, we’re just inviting fans along on tour?”

Blaine sighed. “Um, no. Kurt’s not just a fan. He’s--” He glanced at Kurt, wondering if he was ready to tell the truth yet. But he saw the almost imperceptible shake of Kurt’s head, and he sighed. “He’s different. He’s not just a traditional fan. I wouldn’t just invite anyone along and trust just anyone. But believe me… Kurt’s not just a fan. So, you don’t need to worry. I’m not gonna pick up anyone else.” _Ever._

“You can’t share how he’s, um, different?” Will asked.

“No. No, I can’t.”

“So, you’re lying then,” Eli said.

Blaine growled, lurching up from his seat. “Hopefully you don’t need me for anything else, because I’m leaving.” He grabbed Kurt’s hand, tugging him up, too. “Come on. Let’s go back to our room.”

“Blaine! Sit back down!” Will demanded. “We need to talk about the festival.”

“It was great. I heard lots of positive comments from everyone who performed, and we sold more tickets this year than any other year so far. Done.”

“No. No. That’s--”

“Bye!” Blaine called, leading Kurt by the hand out of the meeting room and back to the elevator. When they were safely inside, he turned to Kurt. “God, I am _so_ sorry you had to be witness to all of that. I knew it was going to be bad, but I didn’t know it was going to be that bad. I can’t--”

“It’s okay,” Kurt cut in before Blaine could go off on a tirade. “I knew it would get dicey. I’m alright.”

“It shouldn’t have, though,” Blaine grumped. “Eli is just… He’s a jackass. And, Will, for some reason I’ll never understand, has taken him under his wing, treats him as if he’s his son or something.”

“Maybe. But it doesn’t matter. Everything will be fine,” Kurt reassured him.

They returned to their room together, and Blaine made a beeline for his guitar. He picked it up and strummed a few chords, sighing. “Playing always makes me feel better.”

Kurt smiled at him. “I can only imagine. Writing and playing do that for me, too.”

“Wait…” Blaine looked at him curiously. “You play… I’d forgotten.” He glanced down at the guitar then back up at Kurt, a strange smile on his face.

“Yeah. Some. I do most of my composing on the guitar like I told you.”

“Will you play for me?” Blaine asked, holding the guitar out toward Kurt. “I’d love to hear you. Maybe you could… Maybe you could sing for me?”

“Oh, I don’t know… I mean, you’re a famous singer. Why would you want to hear little old me?”

“Kurt… Can I ask you something serious?”

“Of course.”

“Are you going to be...affected...by my status as a singer forever? I don’t want to have that divide between us. Just because I’m a singer for my job doesn’t make me any better than you. I’m still just me. We’re just us; nothing else should weigh in on our dynamic.”

Biting his lip, Kurt nodded. “I’m sorry. I-I shouldn’t have said that.”

Rounding the bed, Blaine approached him and wrapped his arms around Kurt’s middle. “Don’t apologize. We’re learning together, growing together. We just need to talk to one another.”

Kurt nodded. His arms naturally wound around Blaine’s neck, and when the other man leaned in for a quick kiss, he reciprocated, pressing his lips gently to Blaine’s. The kiss was sweet, not needy or heated, and when they pulled back, Kurt leaned heavily against Blaine for a moment, whispering, “If you really want to hear me sing, I will.”

“Please?”

Letting go of Blaine, Kurt moved to the other side of the bed and picked up the guitar. “What should I play?”

“Anything!” Blaine exclaimed, settling down on the end of the bed near Kurt. “Anything at all. An original or anything else.”

“Have you heard any original songs by Ben Platt? There’s one that I love especially. In fact…” He smiled. “I know the perfect one. It ties into something you said earlier, actually.” Settling down on the bed, Kurt balanced the guitar on his knee and strummed a few chords. Then, he glanced at Blaine. “These words are for you.” He started strumming, and a few moments later, his clear, strong voice broke into the silence in the room. He sang through the first verse, but it was when he got to the first chorus that Blaine really woke up and paid attention.

_“_ _I don't think you have to leave_

_If to change is what you need_

_You can change right next to me_

_When you're high, I'll take the lows_

_You can ebb and I can flow_

_And we'll take it slow_

_And grow as we go_

_Grow as we go”_

_He’s right,_ Blaine realized. _This is exactly what I was trying to say_ _a few moments ago. He’s so sweet._

As Kurt sang, he looked into Blaine’s eyes, trying to convey what he was thinking and feeling to the man on the other end of the bed.

_“You won't be the only one_

_I am unfinished, I've got so much left to learn_ _  
_ _I don't know how this river runs_ _  
_ _But I'd like the company through every twist and turn_

 _  
_ _Ooh, who said it's true_ _  
_ _That the growing only happens on your own?_ _  
_ _They don't know me and you”_

It was a little bit surreal, Kurt realized as he sang, to be able to sing to a famous singer, someone who, a few days ago, he’d only watched on stage. Now, he was kissing him, hugging him, calming him. He continued on, excited for the bridge which, in his opinion, had the best lyrics in the whole song.

_“I don't know who we'll become_

_I can't promise it's not written in the stars_

_But I believe that when it's done_

_We're gonna see that it was better_

_That we grew up together”_

He finished out the final chorus strong, happy to see Blaine smiling at him. _He must have liked it,_ he thought as he strummed the final chord, setting the guitar aside and turning toward the singer. “So, what did you think?”

“Kurt, you were phenomenal! So amazing. Your voice… I’ve never heard anything like it. It was beautiful. So, so wonderful.”

Kurt felt his face blush brightly. “Thank you.”

“Seriously. So, so good.”

There were a few beats of silence between them. Then, Kurt said, “What now?”

“Actually, I’d love to just relax and watch TV. I know that sounds silly, but I almost never get to watch anything. We’re constantly moving and practicing. It would be nice to just...not...for a while.”

“That’s not silly at all. What do you want to watch?” Kurt asked, sitting back against the pillows and grabbing the remote from the nightstand.

“Anything at all,” Blaine replied, crawling up the bed to cuddle up against Kurt, just as he’d done the night before, sighing happily. “I love this,” he whispered.

Kurt brought his hand up to rest on Blaine’s head momentarily. “Me, too,” he whispered. 

They ended up watching the Game Show Network, giggling at the ridiculous _Family Feud_ answers and trying to beat each other at guessing the _Wheel of Fortune_ answers before the contestants on the show. And, with the soft glow of the TV still faintly lighting up the wall, the two of them fell asleep wrapped up together, and they slept soundly.

The next morning, Blaine woke up first, and he moved from Kurt’s side to the nearby pillow to watch the other man sleep. Kurt had an arm tucked beneath his head, his elbow crooked out to the side. His mouth was open just a little, and when Blaine listened closely, he could hear Kurt snoring ever so slightly. _How adorable,_ he thought.

After not too long, Kurt stirred, opening his eyes and blinking slowly at Blaine, getting the blurriness out of his vision. “Good morning,” he said. His voice was husky and deep, quite different from how he normally spoke, and the sound of his voice stirred something deep in Blaine’s stomach, sending his blood rushing south.

“Good morning,” he managed to say, smiling softly. “How did you sleep?”

“Really well. You?”

“Amazing. And, I’ve had an amazing morning watching you sleep,” he replied, smiling.

Kurt didn’t know what to say, but he blushed. “I would really like to take a shower,” Kurt told him finally. “Would you mind if I jump in really quickly? I’m sure you have to get going.”

“I have a few hours. Go ahead.”

Hopping up, Kurt took a quick shower, enjoying the soft, warm rain from the showerhead on the ceiling. _The Four Seasons hotels are insanely nice,_ Kurt thought to himself. _Who would have ever guessed that I would get to spend the night in a Four Seasons room?_ When he left the bathroom, dressed in a nice, tight pair of jeans and a dark t-shirt, he found Blaine sitting on the bed, staring at his phone. “What’s up?” he asked, coming over to sit beside him.

“I just got a message from Nick. He’s not feeling well, and he wants to bow out of the show tonight. He’s apparently throwing up.” He glanced up with nervous eyes. “Would you--Would you be able to fill in for him?”

“Me?” Kurt’s eyes grew to twice their size, nearly popping out of his head. “You want _me_ to play in the band tonight?”

“After last night and what I saw you do, I would be an idiot not to ask you.”

“But...in the band? Are you sure?”

“Kurt,” Blaine told him, scooting closer to him and wrapping him in a side hug, “I’m not pressuring you. If you don’t want to or would be too nervous, you don’t have to. But I think you’d be wonderful, and I wanted to give you the option.”

“I-- I--”

“Take a minute,” Blaine urged. “Think it over. Talk it out if you need to.”

Kurt nodded, taking a deep breath and closing his eyes. _Do I want to be in the band? Do I want to play? Will I have enough time to practice? What if I mess up? What about the rest of the band? Just ask Blaine._ “Okay. Will I have enough time to practice with you? What will the rest of the band think?”

“If you want, we can head to the venue now and practice all day. And, no one will say anything because you are saving our asses.”

“Ooookay,” Kurt agreed slowly. “I’ll try.”

“You’re wonderful!” Blaine replied, hopping up and pressing a quick kiss to his lips. “I’ll let the guys know, and we’ll get going. Okay?”

“Okay.”

“You’re the best!”

  
Kurt grinned, but all he could think was _I hope I don’t screw this up..._


	10. Chapter 9: You're My Muse

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today’s song: How Sweet It Is To Be Loved By You by James Taylor  
> Lyric inspiration:  
> “I needed the shelter of someone’s arms and there you were.  
> I needed someone to understand my ups and downs and there you were.  
> …  
> I close my eyes at night wondering where would I be without you in my life.  
> Everything I did was just a bore, everywhere I went it seems I’d been there before.  
> But you brighten up for me all of my days with a love so sweet in so many ways  
> …  
> You were better for me than I was for myself,  
> for me, there’s you and there ain’t nobody else”

“Oh my God! Kurt, you were fantastic!” Elliot exclaimed after they ran off the stage in Baltimore. “Freaking phenomenal, man!”

“Uh, thanks,” Kurt replied with a smile.

“He’s not wrong, you know,” Jeff commented, clapping him on the back as he passed by.

“Nice,” Sebastian told him.

“Kurt…” That was Blaine, and when Kurt turned to face him, he saw nothing but love and devotion in his eyes. “That was amazing. Like, I knew you were good, but your harmonies were...perfect.”

“Thanks,” Kurt whispered, crossing the distance between them and falling into Blaine’s arms. “I was scared shitless,” he whispered into his ear.

“Well, you had no reason to be, but I’m proud of you nonetheless,” Blaine whispered back.

Behind them, Kurt could see Eli glaring at the two of them, and he couldn’t resist sticking his tongue out at him for a moment when Eli’s back was turned to them once again. “So, what now?” he asked, pulling back to look Blaine in the eyes.

“I wanna get you a drink and celebrate.”

Kurt scrunched up his nose. “I don’t really drink in public,” he reminded him.

“Just one drink? A celebratory champagne?”

“Uh… I’ll take a few sips. How’s that?”

“I think I can work with it,” Blaine answered.

The band made quick work of cleaning up the stage and getting all of their equipment ready to be reloaded on the bus. Then, they all gathered up and walked a few blocks down the street to a local bar that one of the stagehands had recommended to Sebastian. Jeff hung around outside for a moment to call Nick and make sure that he was okay, so the rest of them went inside and got a table, ordering everyone a round of champagne.

“How’s Nick?” they all asked when Jeff came back inside.

“He’s fine. Feeling better and ready to do our next show, he says. Must have been some sort of 24-hour bug or something.” Jeff made a sad face. “I really don’t want to stay long. I want to get back to the hotel and make sure he’s not actually dying. You know how Nick is sometimes. He tells me he’s fine, but really, he’s coughing up a lung or puking his guts out in the toilet.”

“I don’t want to stay long either,” Blaine agreed, glancing at Kurt to get his reaction. “I just wanted to get this guy a nice glass of champagne and a bit of supper to show him how much I appreciate what he did for us tonight.”

There were murmurs of agreement around the table. Then, Eli spoke up.

“So, when do we finally get to know the truth?”

“Know what truth?”

“That the two of you are soulmates.” He looked steadily into Blaine’s eyes, not wavering. “I saw the heart on your wrist earlier today while you were adjusting equipment. It explains a lot. But it’s so unlike you to keep secrets from everyone.”

Blaine seethed. He glanced at Kurt to see if he was alright before standing up and stalking over to Eli. “You know what?” he said, getting right in the other guy’s face. “I’m tired, Eli. The entire time you’ve been with the band, you’ve not been a friend to us. You’ve only cared about the fame and what it can do for you. And because we needed a bassist, we accepted you. But now, you’ve gone too far. Outing someone for any reason before they’re ready, about  _ anything _ , is never okay. So,” he straightened up, looking each one of the band members individually, “I want to take a vote. If you want Eli to leave, raise your hand and say ‘aye.’”

All the guys gathered around the table looked wide-eyed at one another and back to Blaine and Eli who was stuttering out a protest. 

"Y-you can't do that!" he bellowed. "You-you can't jus-just decide you don-don't want me anymore."

"You're right," Blaine said quietly. "I can't. But we as a  _ band _ can."

"Will won't let you. He--"

"He doesn't get to decide. We do." He gestured around the table at everyone staring. 

"Well, well… Nick-Nick isn't here! So…"

"Jeff, call Nick. Tell him what's going on. Have him vote."

“Blaine, I-I don’t know if--” Jeff began but cut off when Blaine gave him a sharp look.

“Look, you guys. I’m going to be frank with you. I love all of you, and I love our band. I love what we do. But I’ve got some dignity, and I have to do what’s right for me and for Kurt. So…” He took a deep breath; the next part was going to be difficult to say, but it needed to come out. “If I need to leave instead…” He paused, swallowing back tears. “If I need to leave, then so be it. I’ll make that sacrifice for us. But I hope you know I don’t want to.”

“Are you serious?” Elliot asked. “Would you...Would you actually leave? You’re that unhappy?”

“I am,” Blaine confirmed. “Especially in light of what he just told all of you. But I don’t want to sway your decision one way or another.  If you are happy with Eli, then, by all means, tell me I need to go. I can be gone by morning.”

There were only a few seconds of delay before Jeff had his phone to his ear, calling Nick to tell him what was going on. Elliot and Sebastian talked together for a few moments in hushed, quiet voices, Eli looked pissed, and Blaine came to stand beside Kurt’s chair, his hand finding Kurt’s and gripping it as if it was his last connection to life, the only thing keeping him from falling off the precipice of the cliff he was standing on.

Kurt found himself holding his breath. This, he realized, was history. He was sitting at the table watching a decision be made that would change everything for Blaine and Warbler Attack for good. Blaine might leave the group, go back to Ohio, and then what would he do? Kurt, for his part, would go with him, of course, but what was left for him in Ohio? He doubted very much that Dalton would take him back. Neither would his job. He didn’t really mind so much about that. In fact, it was Blaine he was worried about. What would Blaine do? He was a rockstar now, famous, recognizable. There was no way a quiet life in Ohio would suit him anymore, and Kurt couldn’t bear the thought of possibly having to watch this man he already cared so deeply about wither away because he had to leave the group that he’d helped to create and loved so much.  _ Please make the right decision _ , he begged the band internally.  _ Please send Eli away.  _

A few minutes later, Jeff held up his phone, showing a video chat of his soulmate. “Nick’s got his vote,” he announced, drawing everyone’s attention. “How do you want to do this?”

“Like we always do, I guess,” Blaine said, taking a deep breath and squeezing Kurt’s hand once more to try to quell his nerves. “Anyone who wants to vote Eli out, raise your hand and say ‘aye.’”

Around the table, three hands shot up, and so did Nick’s on Jeff’s phone screen, followed by a smattering of “aye” from everyone.

For a moment, Eli didn’t say anything. He just stared at the four boys with their hands in the air, his mouth opening and closing like a fish. “But--But--” he finally managed to sputter. “You-you can’t--”

“Can and did,” Blaine cut him off, not interested in listening to any of his excuses. “I’ll let David know what’s happened, and he’ll let you on the bus to collect your things. You can stay the night in your band hotel room, but any further charges that are made for that room will be your responsibility. I’ll have the band’s lawyers get in touch with you to work everything out.” He sounded much calmer about everything than his grip on Kurt’s hand relayed to the other man.

“I--I--”

“I’ll go with you,” Elliot volunteered, shouldering Sebastian to get him to get up as well. “I’m sorry it’s come to this, man, but Blaine’s right.  You shouldn’t have outed them tonight. We appreciate your service to the band, but it’s time we all move on.”

Eli jumped out of his chair to get into Elliot’s face. “I was a major part of this band! The fans came to see  _ me,  _ not any of the rest of you! You can’t do this without me, and I can’t wait to watch you fail!” His lip curled up into a snarl, and he looked around wildly, wondering who else he could attack on his emotional rampage.

“Okay. Scratch the coming with you thing then,” Elliot replied, moving back in the direction of his chair. “Have a good life.”

“Whatever!” Eli replied, stalking off as he flipped everyone at the table the bird.

They all watched him go, and for a moment, no one said anything. Blaine sent a text to David to let him know about Eli and that he would almost certainly be coming back to destroy something. He was glad when he got a response right away, telling him that they would have Eli’s stuff waiting for him when he got back to the bus.

“Well, that makes me feel less like celebrating,” Jeff finally said, breaking the silence.

“Yeah. I think catching a ride back to the hotel would be good. What do you think, babe?” Sebastian asked, turning to Elliot.

“Yeah…” Elliot agreed. “I think that’s a good idea.”

“Sorry that I ruined the night, guys,” Blaine apologized, pulling each of the guys into a quick bro hug.

“Don’t apologize,” Seb told him quietly.  “Eli outed you and Kurt when you weren’t ready. That’s not cool. And, like Elliot said, it’s time for us to move on. We can find a better bassist.” He smiled in Kurt’s direction. 

Blaine nodded, watching as they left, followed shortly by Jeff. “Hope Nick’s feeling better,” Blaine called after him. Then, he turned back to Kurt, walking slowly back over to where he was still sitting at the table. He sat down in his seat beside him, sighing heavily. “I am  _ so  _ sorry about all that,” he said, his gaze full of sadness. “I had no idea he would…”

“Shhh,” Kurt shushed him. “There’s no reason to apologize to me. In fact, you shouldn’t apologize to anyone for that. You were standing up for yourself,  for us , and that’s a very brave and admirable thing to do.”

“Do you think so?” Blaine asked, pillowing his head on his arms, his face turned toward Kurt. “ Because even though I wanted to protect you so much, right now, I just feel like an asshole. ”

“I know so,” Kurt replied, reaching out to rub his back tentatively. He immediately felt Blaine relax under the touch, and that gave him an idea. “What do you say we go back to the hotel, too, and just try to relax? It’s been a long, stressful night.”

“It’s not over, I’m afraid,” Blaine sighed. “I’m sure Will will be calling me soon. David probably, too, to let me know how much trouble Eli caused when he got back to the bus.”

“It’s hard to be the leader, isn’t it?” Kurt asked him softly, hoping he didn’t sound patronizing. He wasn’t trying to be. He just wanted Blaine to see that that was his role so he could make his next point.

“I guess…”

“Even leaders deserve a break,” Kurt told him. “So, turn off your phone for tonight. Let’s go back to the hotel and relax. You can turn it back on at 8 o’clock sharp and deal with everyone’s problems at that point. Until then, you need some time to recuperate from that very traumatic thing you just experienced.”  _ And, so do I... _   
  


“I don’t know if getting rid of Eli counts as traumatic…”

“He was your friend once. Even if you didn’t feel that way about him today doesn’t mean there’s not a little part of you that’s sad.”

Blaine just looked at Kurt for a moment, not saying anything. “You’re so freaking smart,” he finally said, his voice full of awe. “Every time I think I might be able to figure you out, you zig when I’m expecting a zag. You amaze me, Kurt.”

Kurt felt his cheeks flush lightly. “Thanks,” he said. Then, he tugged gently at Blaine’s arm. “Come on. Let’s go.”

They didn’t have to wait long for the car to get back from dropping Elliot, Seb, and Jeff at the hotel. They didn’t talk while they rode to their building; both of them were just soaking up the other’s presence, Kurt focusing on calming Blaine as best he knew how and Blaine focusing on just breathing and slowing his heart rate. Kurt was right; that had taken a lot out of him, more than he’d wanted to admit.

As soon as they got up to their room, Blaine did as Kurt had suggested and shut off his phone  after sending a text to David to let him know his plan , plugging it into his charging cord on his nightstand and putting it face down so he didn’t even have to look at it. Then, he collapsed on his stomach on the bed, moaning when his head hit the pillow. “God, it feels so freaking good to lay down.”

Kurt smiled. “I bet it does.”

“Are you okay?” Blaine asked him, turning his head so he could see him better. “I just realized we’ve spent the whole time talking about me, and I haven’t once asked how you’re feeling. I mean, you were just outed, too.”

“I was,” Kurt agreed. “But I think I actually feel okay about it.” He stopped, taking a minute to think so that he could be sure to get the right words out. “I think the band, even if they weren’t consciously aware of it, knew that we were more than just casual friends. And, I trust that they’ll be polite and give us space until we’re ready to talk about it with them.”

“Aren’t you afraid of what Eli will say, though? That he will out us to the rest of the world?”

“What if he does?” Kurt asked, surprised at himself for being the rational one this time. Typically, he would be freaking out about it, but he wasn’t. Something in him was telling him that it wouldn’t be a big deal, and he trusted that feeling.

“Are we ready for the whole world to know?”

“They’ll know eventually,” Kurt replied. He paused for a moment. “I agree that we do need to talk about it more, especially since we haven’t even used...that word...to talk about ourselves yet. But right now, there are too many emotions swirling around, and I think we both just need to relax. Would you like a shoulder massage?”

Blaine wasn’t sure if letting it go right now was the best decision, but he trusted Kurt. “If you’re about to tell me that you’re also a masseuse, I will marry you right now.”

At that, Kurt’s heart lurched.  _ I’d marry you right now, too, _ he thought to himself. Instead, he said, “Well, I’m not a trained masseuse, but according to Mercedes, I give a pretty good massage.”

“Sounds heavenly,” Blaine replied, his voice muffled by the pillow.

Climbing up onto the bed, Kurt said, “You know, it would probably work better with your shirt off. I’ll be able to work out the kinks better that way.”  _ Oh, my God! What are you saying? You will not survive if Blaine takes his shirt off! A massage is so intimate. Are you ready for that? What are you doing?! _

“You’re right,” Blaine agreed. “That way, if I fall asleep, I’m at least comfortable.” Very slowly, he slipped out of bed, peeling off his shirt and, to Kurt’s horror, his jeans as well, climbing back in dressed in only his boxers. They were sinfully tight and looked oh, so good hugging his ass and… well… the rest of him. “You, too?” he asked, already looking sleepy as he settled back down on his stomach.

“M-me, too, what?” Kurt stuttered.

“Shirt,” was all Blaine said, his eyes drifting shut.

“Ummm, sure…” Kurt agreed, peeling off his shirt. The problem was now that he had on tight jeans, and that was not going to work as he was going to have to straddle Blaine in order to reach his shoulders. God, he wanted nothing more than to dress down to his boxers like Blaine and let whatever was going to happen happen.  _ Can I risk it? _ he wondered to himself.  _ What if-- _

Blaine made an impatient little sound, reaching out a blind hand in Kurt’s direction. “Kuuuuuurt.”

“I’m coming; I’m coming,” Kurt soothed, deciding not to think about it too long. He wriggled out of his jeans and then slowly got into position, his knees on either side of Blaine’s hips. He was careful as he lowered himself down, not sure how far he should go. When Blaine wriggled a bit, however, trying to get comfortable, Kurt lost his balance, and his bare leg brushed Blaine’s ever so lightly.

Blaine’s head whipped up, and he looked at Kurt with big eyes, a question already forming. “Are you--?”

“Oh, do you want me to--”

“I mean I--”

“I can just--”

“Wait!” Blaine grabbed Kurt’s wrist before he could leave. “Don’t. Don’t get up. I was just surprised. But I’m fine. And, I, well, I kinda like it,  this new level of intimacy. ”

“Okay…” Kurt replied, not really sure what to say to that. “Well, I--Do you want me to get started?”

“Please?” Blaine laid back down, tucking his arms beneath the pillow and resting his head there, letting out a satisfied sigh.

Neither of the boys was prepared for the current of electricity that shot through them both at the first touch of Kurt’s fingertips to Blaine’s back. Even though they’d experienced it every time they kissed,  when Blaine had grazed Kurt’s arm in the bathroom and when he’d slipped a finger beneath his shirt, when they held hands, even though they’d felt it when their legs had brushed only moments before,  they weren’t prepared for how overwhelmed they felt by this more intimate moment. They both spent a few minutes panting and breathing heavily as they sat there, Kurt balanced over Blaine’s ass, Blaine’s breathing causing his body to lift every so often, bringing their bodies within a hair's breadth of touching each time he moved. 

“Holy shit,” Blaine managed when he could think clearly again. He wanted to say more, compliment Kurt on his warm, soft hands, tell him how much he wished there were no layers of clothes between them at all, but the words caught in his throat, unable to find their way out.

Kurt just nodded, not able to say anything. Blaine’s skin beneath his hands felt amazing. Perfect, even. It felt right to touch him like this, almost no barriers between them, as if they’d done it all at some other point in time, as if they’d gotten to know each other's bodies on a very intimate level before. Kurt couldn’t place those feelings or understand why he felt that way. He wondered for a blissful moment if it had something to do with the hearts on their wrists, but he didn’t give it too much thought. Eventually, he tried to touch again, and while the sparks were definitely still there, attacking his senses with each gentle caress of his fingertips, it seemed a bit more manageable now, as if their bodies were getting used to one another again.

_ Is this what heaven feels like? _ Blaine wondered to himself as Kurt began to knead out the kinks in his shoulders and along his spine.  _ Have I died and entered the afterlife? This is amazing.  _ He wanted to ask Kurt these questions, but he didn’t want to break the silence between them. He was just getting to the good place where he was beginning to feel a little more like jello and a little less like the lead singer of an up-and-coming band, and he didn’t want Kurt to stop touching him. 

Eventually, Blaine fell asleep. Kurt was just finishing up his massage, working his fingers up and down Blaine’s spine, getting dangerously close to the band of his boxers before moving back up again, almost as if he were flirting with the idea of doing something else.

When he was finished, Kurt carefully climbed back over to his own side of the bed, cuddled under the blankets before tossing a light sheet over Blaine’s body to keep him from freezing, then turned off the light. He lay there in the dark for a while, just thinking about what had happened at the bar, hoping he’d given Blaine good advice about shutting off his phone until morning. Then, his thoughts drifted to his own conundrums.  _ How do I feel about being outed as Blaine’s soulmate? We’ve not even been brave enough to say that word to each other yet, but now, the whole band knows. Speaking of the band, am I a part of it now? _ _ Officially? They didn’t vote, but now they’re going to need a bass guitarist. Do I want that for myself? Do I want to be a permanent fixture in the band? _ He wasn’t sure what to do with those thoughts and feelings, and the more he considered them in the dark,  the more that confident feeling he’d had when talking to Blaine about it faded, and the more hints of anxiety began to creep in.

So, he turned onto his side and watched Blaine sleep, doing his best to clear his mind of all the intrusive thoughts and only focus on the man next to him, his soulmate. The outline of a heart next to one’s soulmark denoted that they’d met their match, that the heart would only darken as they fell more in love with one another. Still, there was something keeping them from admitting their feelings and the true meaning of those hearts aloud to one another. _Fear?_ he wondered. _Would saying it out loud make it too real?_ _I guess we’ll have to figure that out since everyone knows now._ Eventually, he drifted off to sleep himself.

The next morning, Kurt blinked open his eyes to the sound of Blaine singing softly. He looked around, confused for a minute as reality made itself known. He wasn’t in bed because the sheet was empty and cool next to him. He wasn’t in the shower as Kurt couldn’t hear the sound of the water running, and he wasn’t sitting at the little desk or in the overstuffed chair because Kurt could see both of those from where he was lying. Rolling onto his other side, he finally caught sight of Blaine beside the window.

All the lights were still off, presumably so Kurt could continue to sleep, but Blaine had the curtain pulled back just a bit so he could see outside. There was a thin beam of light coming in, bouncing off the wall a few feet from the bed and illuminating things around it ever so slightly. The other man was still dressed in only his boxers, and Kurt took a moment to admire him and the way his body looked in the soft light. He was so muscular and so well built, compact but still perfect. A cute ass, a well-defined chest, and abs that left his eyes trailing down to what would be juuuuust under that band of his shorts. Toned, muscled legs and cute little bare feet, broad shoulders, the most perfect neck that was just begging for kisses. A strong jaw, adorable cheek bones, and that wild, curly hair that never ceased to make Kurt smile.

Kurt strained to hear what Blaine was singing, grinning when he finally caught the lyrics. 

_ “ _ _ Good morning Baltimore _

_ Every day’s like an open door _

_ Every night is a fantasy  _

_ Every sound’s like a symphony _

_ Good morning Baltimore” _

“Well, good morning,” Kurt said softly, his voice cutting through Blaine’s singing and startling the other man. Kurt just smiled at him. “It’s not every day I get to wake up to a beautiful lead singer in my room, singing show tunes.”

Blaine grinned. “I’m thinking you might want to get used to that,” he said, letting the curtain fall shut and bathing the room in darkness. “This is pretty normal for me.” There were a few beats of silence then the curtain moved again, and Kurt could see Blaine’s chagrined face in the dim light from the morning outside. “I was going to walk over to the bed, but then I couldn’t see,” he admitted, blushing. 

Chuckling, Kurt flipped on the lamp next to the bed, watching as Blaine walked over and perched on the edge of the bed. “How’d you sleep?”

“Fabulous. Like a baby. Like a rock. Whichever one of those obnoxious sayings you want to use.” He grinned widely. “How about you?”

“Um, well...good,” Kurt admitted. “I had a dream about you. And...there was a song. Well, that’s a stretch. Just some bits of lyrics, really. I’d like--Well, do we have time for me to write them down before we need to pack up?”

“Sure,” Blaine agreed. “We’re not leaving until mid-morning, and it’s only a little bit after eight right now. So, that should be fine.”

“Where are we going next?” Kurt asked as he slid out of bed to retrieve his notebook and a pencil from his backpack. Blaine didn’t answer him, and when he turned around, he found that it was because Blaine was staring at him, open-mouthed. “What?” he asked, confused. “Is there something on me?” He glanced down at himself, expecting to find a t-shirt and pajama pants. Instead, he found himself looking at just his navy blue boxers, and when his eyes flitted back up to Blaine’s, he was sure he was blushing a brighter red than a cherry. “I need to put on clothes.”

“No! No, please don’t,” Blaine begged, sliding off the bed and taking a few steps closer to him. “Please. I just… You’re stunning, Kurt. Your body is perfect. I was just… admiring you.”

“Oh… I--I don’t think I’ve ever had anyone tell me that before…”

“Well, I don’t know how anyone could miss out on complimenting you like that. You’re truly stunning. The most incredible man I’ve ever seen.”

Kurt felt his blush sink into his neck, shoulders, and upper chest. “I, um, well…” he stammered. “I’ve, uh, not really been intimate with too many people before.  Like I said, I’ve never even really had a formal boyfriend. I’m...I’m kinda a baby penguin about all this stuff…”

“I see…” Blaine murmured, coming closer to wrap his arms around Kurt’s waist. His fingers played at the base of Kurt’s spine as he pressed their hips together. He could feel everything Kurt had to offer through his boxers because the blood was rushing south pretty quickly, it appeared. Blaine hoped that Kurt was okay with this; he hadn’t asked, but the man wasn’t pulling away or asking him to stop, so Blaine didn’t, his own blood rushing to catch up with Kurt’s.

They only stayed that way for a few minutes before things grew a little more heated. Kurt leaned in, pressing kisses against Blaine’s lips. It was Blaine, though, that took things a bit further, begging for entrance into Kurt’s mouth with quick, careful swipes of his tongue across Kurt’s lips. He explored him for several minutes, learning every inch of Kurt’s mouth before moving to place kisses at the corners of his mouth, across his cheeks, behind his ears, down his neck, and to his chest. 

By this time, both the boys were panting, and a few unstoppable moans may have escaped their mouths, unchecked. Their hips were doing a flirtatious dance together, both of them finding frustration in the friction, and when it felt like things were maybe not going to slow down or stop anytime soon, Kurt pumped the brakes. He didn’t want to, but he knew that if they didn’t stop now, this would turn into a full-fledged use of every surface in their hotel room, and they really didn’t have time for that. Maybe when they got to...wherever they were going--Blaine hadn’t answered him earlier, after all--but not right then. “Blaaaaiiine,” Kurt panted. “We, oh, we-we have to-to-to stop.”

“Why? We’re enjoying, mmm, enjoying each other.”

“Because-because if we don’t stop now, I’m going to-to do a lot of things to you that we have, nnnng, haven’t talked about ye-yet.”

“That’s okay… I-I want to do things to you, too.” Blaine stopped licking his way down to Kurt’s nipple to look up at the other man from beneath his lashes.

“I want that, too,” Kurt told him honestly, doing his best to keep his breathing in check. “But we can’t do it right now, Blaine. We have to get packed up soon, you haven’t turned your phone on yet, and as much as we don’t want to think about it, there was a mess created last night that will need some cleaning up. I promise you that I’m not saying this because I don’t want to-to-to have sex with you.”  _ Keep it together, Hummel. _ “I’m only saying it because now just isn’t the right time.”

Blaine nodded, knowing that Kurt was right. He was already feeling himself start to deflate, the carnal desire he’d been feeling only moments before beginning to fade as well. “You’re right,” he told Kurt sadly, moving back a step or two. “You’re right; I just--I got carried away. I’m sorry.”

“You have nothing to apologize for,” Kurt reassured him. “I loved it, every moment of it. And, if a genie came to grant me a wish right this minute, I’d beg her for time to stop so we could do anything and everything we wanted. But I don’t think a genie is coming, so we’re going to have to take a raincheck.”

“A genie, huh?” Blaine asked, chuckling as he placed one more soft kiss against Kurt’s lips before stepping back toward the bed to retrieve his as yet untouched phone.

Kurt smiled. “Well, it was that or a fairy, and I don’t think we have any higher chance of one of those showing up.”

“You’re right,” Blaine agreed, his thumb hovering over the power button on his phone. He stared at the black screen for a moment, taking deep breaths and trying to convince himself to just do it and get it over with. It was only going to get worse the longer he ignored the problem.

Then, he felt a warm body behind him and long arms reaching around to hold onto his own. “You can do it,” Kurt whispered in his ear. “I know it’s going to be tough, but I’m right here to help you through.”

Blaine nodded, still looking down. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of their two wrists, pressed together. Their marks lined up perfectly, and Blaine could see that the hearts were steadily darkening up, now a silvery gray color instead of the faint, barely-there pencil marks that they’d started with a few days ago. “Thanks,” he whispered, turning his face into Kurt’s neck for a moment, breathing deeply for a bit to calm himself.

Taking one more good, deep breath, Blaine turned back to his phone and pressed the power button, watching with trepidation as the screen immediately lit up, the powering up symbol popping onto the screen. His belly was flip-flopping, and his heart was beating rapidly as he stared at it, waiting to see what would come up first. He hoped Kurt wouldn’t leave, and to his relief, a few moments later, he was still there behind him, a solid presence offering him strength.

The first thing that popped up on his screen was a series of texts from Eli.  They varied wildly between anger and sadness, and a few of them didn’t make much sense. Then, two phone calls from Eli popped up onto the screen, complete with one voicemail. Blaine wasn’t sure he wanted to listen to that, but he figured he should at some point, just to be sure there was nothing important on the call. 

Following all of that, Blaine got a few texts from David, letting him know that Eli had gotten his things, had only broken one acoustic guitar on his way off the bus, and they hadn’t seen him since.

There then came a large grouping of texts and missed calls from Will. Blaine didn’t take the time to read them all, merely skimming over them to make sure there was nothing truly important there. For the most part, they were asking questions Blaine didn’t feel like answering, and he just rolled his eyes.

The most interesting texts, though, were the ones from the rest of the band. There was only one message each, but each one filled him with hope that everything was going to turn out alright.

**From Jeff, 12:18 am:** _ Hey. I just wanted to say thanks for what you did tonight. And, congrats on finding your soulmate. I promise not to make a big deal out of it until you’re ready to talk. Maybe Kurt can join us permanently now. _

**From Sebastian, 1:44 am:** _You’re awesome, dude. Way to stand up for yourself. And, congrats on finding Kurt._

**From Elliot, 1:48 am:** _Blaine, I’m proud of you for standing up for yourself. Now, we’ve got room for Kurt. I like that better. Congrats._

**From Nick, 3:13 am:** _ Hey, dude. I just woke up, but I wanted to say that I’m glad you didn’t let Eli off the hook. He shouldn’t have outed you. I’m looking forward to Columbus and seeing Kurt in action! Congrats on finding your soulmate! _

Blaine really hoped that Kurt was reading over his shoulder, because those messages were not just for his eyes alone. They were definitely, definitely also for Kurt, and he hoped that Kurt would say yes when they formally asked him if he would join the band, something apparently everyone wanted.

“Woah…”

Turning to look at him, Blaine asked, “Didn’t expect that?”

Kurt just shook his head. “No. Hell no. No way. Those guys want me to  _ join _ Warbler Attack? Like, permanently?”

“Yes. Kurt, you’re amazing. I know that you don’t have the confidence in yourself that you should have. I don’t know why, and some day, I hope to find out. But for now, I hope you’ll feel the confidence that I have in you because you deserve it all!”

Not knowing what to say, Kurt just nodded, pressing a quick kiss to Blaine’s lips. “I’m just gonna write down those lyrics if I can even remember them now,” he told Blaine. “Thanks for all your confidence and positive words.”

“Any day, handsome. I’m gonna hop in the shower before I get packing.”

“‘Kay.” Kurt sat down on the bed, pulling his notebook and pencil into his lap and opening to a blank page. He couldn’t remember everything he had dreamed of; he knew that. Only bits and pieces were coming back to him now, but those parts were better than nothing. Quickly, he wrote everything down.  _ “Shelter of your arms...understand me, highs and lows...sleeping in the dark, thinking of you...where would I be...I was bored...you make my life bright...sweet...better than me for me...no one but you…” _

When he was finished, he read back over what he’d put down, happy with it. It was no song, barely even made sense, in fact, but it was a start. That was all he needed.

A few hours later, the guys were packed up on the bus along with the rest of the band. Everyone seemed far more excited than Kurt had ever seen them, and he was happy to see the rest of the band in good spirits. They’d had a vote the very first moment they stepped on the bus, and they’d officially voted Kurt in as their permanent bass player, something that made Kurt both excited and nervous. He sent a text to his mom and Brittany as he’d been doing every day, letting them know what had just happened and swearing them to secrecy. Blaine had promised there would be a press release and probably a public meeting with members of the press to officially announce his membership. For now, Kurt would just show up and do what he was supposed to do. They wouldn’t say anything officially, and they would wait to see how many people noticed the change.

The drive was long; they were headed all the way to Columbus, Ohio, a prospect which made Kurt both nervous and excited. He was going to be close to home, but it would be nothing like it would have been to return to Ohio and head back to Dalton. He would be there in a professional capacity, doing something he’d always dreamed of doing but never thought he’d get to do. 

Blaine made him even more nervous when he leaned over and tapped him on the shoulder. “Hey,” he said quietly.

“Hey,” Kurt replied, getting lost in Blaine’s beautiful eyes for a moment.

“Guess what.”

“What?”

“My mom and my brother are coming to the show so you can meet them.”

Kurt’s throat constricted, his breath catching, and he stared at Blaine with wide eyes, not saying anything.

“You okay?”

“Uh...I-I don’t know.”

“What’s wrong? Tell me what you’re thinking, please.”

“Meet-meeting your mom? Your-your brother? That’s a--That’s a huge thing.”

Blaine looked a little confused. “You’ve met my brother before; he was your teacher. And, my mom is sweet. Very sweet. She’ll love you.”

“What about your dad? Where’s he?”

“Uh… My-my dad--” He stopped. “Actually, can we talk about that later? In private?”

“Sure. Could we--I mean, have you already committed to your mom coming? Because I feel like we really need to talk about this…” He struggled to get his words out, wanting to be sensitive to what Blaine wanted but unable to keep himself from telling Blaine how he really felt. 

“Shhh,” Blaine whispered. “Yes, we’ll talk about it. I promise. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have sprung that on you like that.”

Kurt tugged on Blaine’s arm until he was sitting closer to him, and he could rest his head on Blaine’s shoulder. “It’s okay.”

For the rest of the drive to Columbus, the boys spent a lot of time cuddling and whispering to one another. Now that Eli had told the band their secret, there was really no point in hiding their interactions. Everyone already knew.

Checking in at the hotel was a quick and easy process, and soon, they found themselves in another hotel room almost identical to the one they’d left. Plopping their things down by the door, they sat down on the bed and sighed in unison. It was good to be off the bus, even if they were stuck in another hotel room.

“Do you ever get tired of this?” Kurt asked him. “Do you just want to be home?”

“Always. My house is so much more comfortable than any hotel room I’ve ever stayed in. I mean, they’re cushy and all, but not nearly as nice as my house. You’ll love my house when you get to see it.”

Kurt sighed. “I guess that’s as good a transition as any to talk about meeting your family. Do you want to do that now?”

“Sure,” Blaine said. “But I have a request.”

“What is it?”

“Um, I want--and you can say no if you want to--but I’d kinda like to snuggle in just, um, in just our boxers?” He blushed, looking at Kurt from beneath his lashes again.

Kurt smiled, pressing a kiss to Blaine’s forehead. “I’m okay with that,” he replied. “As long as we can promise to keep our hands to ourselves until we’re done with our serious conversation.”

Blaine saluted him. “Scouts honor.”


	11. Chapter 10 - Your Perfect Imperfections

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today’s song: Your Man by Josh Turner
> 
> Lyric Inspiration:  
> "Baby, lock the door and turn the lights down low  
> And put some music on that's soft and slow  
> Baby we ain't got no place to go  
> I hope you understand
> 
> I've been thinking 'bout this all day long  
> Never felt a feeling quite this strong  
> I can't believe how much it turns me on  
> Just to be your man"

When they were comfy in the bed, both of them wearing nothing but their boxers, their legs tangled together beneath the blankets and Kurt’s arms wrapped around Blaine as he leaned into him, they both sighed happily. This was perfect, exactly what they’d been wanting ever since that morning when they’d had their unplanned encounter with each other.

“So, who should start?” Kurt wondered aloud, letting his fingertips trace up and down in the little space between Blaine’s pecs.

Blaine reached up and put his hand over Kurt’s, stopping him. “You said we had to keep our hands to ourselves during this, and I promised to be a good boy.” He craned his neck to look up at Kurt, pouting. “But if you’re going to do that, you’re going to make me break my promise. You’re seriously irresistible to me, and I barely have the self-control to stop you right now.”

“I’m sorry,” Kurt replied, stopping, a smile on his face. “I’ll be good, too. Swear.”

“Thank you,” Blaine answered snuggling down into him a little. “I can start if you want. My story isn’t terribly painful. Just embarrassing.”

“Go ahead,” Kurt replied, lacing their fingers together on top of the blankets and settling a bit deeper into the pillows.

“So, I’ve never actually known my dad,” Blaine confessed. “Coop and I don’t have the same father. Our mother is… Well, she didn’t have a great experience with soulmates growing up, and as a result, she had a lot of one-night stands. The way she talks about it, she was searching for something, anything that didn’t feel like it could be a soulmate connection. See, her mom’s soulmate died young, really young, and she saw how much pain it caused her mom. She didn’t want to put herself into a position where she could ever feel that torn up about someone, so she avoided ever finding her soulmate. She just slept around. Coop and I have begged her to try to find her person, but she’s sure she doesn’t want to.”

Kurt was quiet for a bit, taking that in. He couldn’t imagine ever being in a position where he hoped to never find his soulmate. His dad’s death had been hard on his mom. That was true, and he’d seen it firsthand. But it didn’t make him want to give up on soulmates altogether. That probably, partially, had something to do with how Elizabeth had always spoken of Burt, like he was the best thing to ever happen to her and she wouldn’t trade their time together for the world.

Finally, he said, “I’m sorry, Blaine. That was probably tough. I can see why you don’t like to share.” 

“It was hard for a long time,” Blaine answered honestly. He had spent a lot of time avoiding talking about this because of how embarrassed he’d always been about his past and how he came into the world, and it felt good to talk to Kurt about it, the person Fate had chosen to be his partner for the rest of his life. Or maybe longer. “I would always wonder why other kids’ parents seemed so happy yet my mom seemed so sad. I would get teased for not having a dad and for having a mom who had no one to love. On top of that, my sexuality was a problem for a while until I ventured out further into the world and realized that all I had to do was own it. If someone didn’t like me for who I was, well, that was too bad for them. I’ve never looked back since.”

“That’s amazing,” Kurt whispered, leaning in to press a kiss to the side of Blaine’s head. “You’re so strong, Blaine, and that constantly amazes me. I wish I could have known you when we were younger, because I really needed a person like you, someone to show me I didn’t have to be afraid of the world.”

“It’s never really felt like strength, though,” Blaine admitted. “And, I’m not sure I could have helped anyone else back then. That’s something I have to give a bit of credit to fame for. It’s made me more confident, like I have something to give to the world that might actually help someone else.”

“Well, it’s strength in my eyes. And, you’re helping me. I know it.”

The boys were quiet for a while, both of them thinking, Kurt pressing lightly into Blaine’s back to help to reassure him that he was there for him and wasn’t letting him go.

“So, that’s why you won’t be meeting my dad when we get to the show,” Blaine said. “Because I don’t know who he is. Mom suspected that he might come out of the woodwork when I got some fame, and maybe he still will. I don’t know.”

“Do you want him to?” Kurt asked quietly. “I mean, do you want to know who he is?”

“Maybe?” Blaine turned a bit so he could see Kurt out of the corner of his eye. “I’ve thought about it so much, thought of all the reasons I should and all the reasons that it would be horrible, and I can never decide the right thing to do. So, in the end, I just put it out of my mind and tell myself I’ll make a decision if anyone claiming to be my dad ever comes forward.” He shrugged. “Maybe that’s a bad idea.”

“No. I think it’s okay,” Kurt told him. “Maybe he’ll never come forward, and you won’t have to worry about it. Maybe he will. Maybe you’ll know the first time you look at him that he’s a horrible person and want nothing to do with him. Maybe it will take a few meetings for you to decide what you really want. No matter what, though, I’ll be with you every step of the way. I promise.”

This time, Blaine turned fully in Kurt’s arms so he could wrap the other man in a hug. “Thank you,” he whispered. “That honestly means the world. I-I really appreciate it.”

“Anything for you,” Kurt told him with a small smile.

They stayed like that for a bit, Blaine’s arms around Kurt’s middle, his head on his shoulder. It was quiet, and they were both wrapped up in their thoughts. Kurt was considering how to tell Blaine his concerns about meeting his family, and Blaine was considering how right it felt to press his cheek into the hollow of Kurt’s shoulder, nuzzle up to his neck, and close his eyes. In the grand scheme of things, he’d never considered how blissful finding his soulmate could be. He’d never really seen how anyone acted in quiet moments with the person made just for them before. Now that he had him, though, everything seemed like a dream, unreal and yet better than anything else could ever be.

Finally, Blaine asked, “So, was there something you wanted to talk about, too?” He was trying to keep his hands from wandering from where he’d draped them around Kurt’s middle up to his other shoulder, to his face, his hair.

“Yeah. I don’t know the best way to tell you this, though.”

“You can tell me anything, and I promise we’ll figure it out somehow, no matter what it is.”

“Okay,” Kurt agreed quietly, swallowing hard. “I, um… Well, I don’t know if meeting your mom and brother is, uh, is the best thing to do right now…”

“Why not?” Blaine sat up so he could look at Kurt’s face, read the emotions playing in his eyes.

“Because… Well, because we-we haven’t… We haven’t even admitted to ourselves what’s going on here. And, I know the band knows, and it’s kinda out into the world now. But… It just… I mean, what do we tell them? Just pull up our sleeves and show them? What if they don’t approve? What if they--” He cut off, not sure what else to say without stuttering over his words.

“Kurt,” Blaine began, picking out his words carefully to only say what he meant, “you don’t have to be afraid of my mom. Or of Coop. They’re both really supportive of me and the things I do. They’re going to love you.”

“How do you--I mean, what if they don’t, though?”

Blaine wasn’t sure what was best. On one hand, he wanted to pull Kurt closer, reassure him over and over again with a million tiny kisses across his face that they were going to be okay. But at the same time, he wanted to get some space between them, let Kurt have a moment to think and talk things out without him pressed up against him like he was trying to suffocate him. Deciding that the best thing to do might be to give him a little space, Blaine pulled back, letting his hands trail down Kurt’s arms until they came to his hands, and grabbing hold, he sat back on his heels, looking deep into Kurt’s eyes.

“My mom loves me, Kurt. Even though she didn’t choose to find her soulmate, she knows Coop and I don’t have to make that choice. She’s going to be overjoyed for me, and she’s going to love you the second she lays eyes on you. She really is the sweetest woman alive, and she will want to hug you and know all about you within five seconds of meeting you. Coop, he’s going to be a little more reserved, but when he gets to know you, you’ll find out he thinks he’s the funniest man on the planet but actually tells the worst jokes. Maybe you’ve seen some of that in his class.” At Kurt’s nod, he went on. “As far as telling them about our marks, we don’t have to if that makes you uncomfortable. We definitely don’t have to show them; we don’t even have to mention it if you don’t want to. They knew that Eli wasn’t my soulmate, but they accepted him with open arms because they believed that was what I wanted. You can have that, too, without telling them the truth. But I kinda hope we can.”

“I-I--”

“Why don’t you just take a moment to think?” Blaine suggested. “I’m not going to let go of you, and you don’t have to say anything. I just want you to have a moment to get your thoughts in order. Because I really want to be considerate of what you want, Kurt. Honestly, I do. I know this is a big thing, and with me being who I am, known to the rest of the world--or at least some of it--it’s even crazier. So, just take a moment and breathe and process. We’ll work through this. I promise.”

Kurt nodded, not saying anything. He closed his eyes and took in a few deep breaths, letting them out slowly through his nose. As he did this, a lightbulb came on in his head, and he opened his eyes, finding Blaine’s beautiful ones staring back at him intently, waiting. “I’ve got it,” he breathed.

Blaine just made a small noise of encouragement, not saying anything.

“I want to meet your mom and your brother. I know that, logically, if this is our forever then meeting them is something that’s going to be good for us in the long run. I know it will make you happy, and I want to do it. But I also want  _ my mom _ to be there.” There. The truth was out, and he felt so much better now that he’d realized what the problem was.

Blinking for just a second, surprised, Blaine asked, “You want your mom to be there?”

Kurt nodded. “Yeah… We’ve been texting a bit. She knows what I’m doing, but I haven’t seen her since I left for New York, and I thought I would be coming back in a few days. I don’t need to see her; I don’t even feel homesick. I just feel like she should be there. She should see you and-and know that I’m alright. Is-is that okay?”

Blaine nodded. “Yeah. That’s-that’s more than okay, Kurt. You don’t have to explain your need to see your mom to me. I get it. You’re allowed to want to see her. And, I think it’s a good idea. She should be there so we can meet, especially if you’re going to be living with me from now on.”

There were a few beats of silence. Then, Kurt asked, “Living with you from now on? Are you--Are you asking me to move in with you, Blaine Anderson?”

Cheeks coloring pink, he answered after a beat, “Uh...yeah. I-I guess I am.”

  
  


“Come back here,” Kurt urged, pulling on Blaine again until they were cuddled up together like they had been, Blaine’s head on Kurt’s shoulder. This time, he draped his wrists on Kurt’s other shoulder, pressing his forehead very lightly against Kurt’s neck and took a few deep breaths. 

_ This is so right _ , he thought to himself.  _ I need to tell him. _ “Kurt?” he mumbled, not moving from his spot.

“Yeah?”

“I know what you said earlier is right, that we-we haven’t admitted what we are yet… I just… Are you scared?”

“Scared to admit what we are to each other?”

“Yeah. Do you… Do you…” He stopped, swallowing before continuing. “Do you feel like that little heart on our wrists makes everything seem like it’s just a little too big to talk about? Like there’s so much to say that words can’t explain everything you feel yet there’s almost nothing to say because that heart kind of explains everything?”

Kurt nodded. “Yeah. I feel that way, too.”

“Well, I know this isn’t the same as admitting it, but I wanna tell you something,” Blaine whispered, snuggling even closer. He smiled when he felt Kurt bring up a hand to cup the back of his head gently.

“What is it?”

“I feel like we were meant to meet, to find one another, to hold each other like this for the rest of our lives. Snuggled here with you like this, well, it feels like the completion of a puzzle, like I’ve been put back together the way I was meant to be when we were created. Maybe that’s what a soulmate connection is supposed to feel like, but it feels bigger somehow. Like we’ve known one another longer than just for a few heartbeats before we were born into this world. Maybe that doesn’t make any sense either, but...” He trailed off, the words to describe the rest of what was racing through his body and mind failing him.

“I feel it, too…” Kurt reassured him. “And, you’ve said it better than I ever could.”

They stayed cuddled this way for a few more moments, contemplating everything before Blaine’s stomach growled loudly, breaking the silence.

“Should we get some food?” Kurt asked, pulling away a bit to look at Blaine. “We can get redressed and find a restaurant or something.”

“Would you mind terribly if we got room service? Cuddling and watching TV together was the best thing ever, and I kinda want to do it again…”

Kurt smiled, nodding. “You know, I’ve never ordered room service before,” he said. “In fact, I’ve never done anything that fancy in my life before. These hotel rooms we get to keep staying in are a lot classier than anything I could ever afford. Did you know,” he went on, smiling as Blaine sat up to look at him with wide eyes, “that for a little while, I considered staying in a hostel in New York just to save a bit of money?”

“You didn’t,” Blaine breathed.

“I did,” Kurt nodded. “But I decided I wouldn’t like the lack of privacy, so I found the cheapest hotel I could find. Then, my knight in shining armor rescued me, and the rest is history!”

Blaine grinned, his heart swelling at the thought of Kurt considering him to be his “knight in shining armor.” “You know...” he said quietly. Then, he broke into song. “ _ I can show you the world/Shining, shimmering splendid/Tell me, my prince, now when did you last let your heart decide? _ ”

Kurt giggled, his hand covering his mouth. As Blaine continued to sing, he shimmied out from behind him, going to grab the menu for room service off the little desk in the corner. When Blaine finally stopped, looking at him with a little pout because he’d stopped paying attention, Kurt said, “My heart has decided on food. How about yours?”

Bouncing off the bed, Blaine wrapped Kurt in a tight, squeezy hug. “Whatever you’d like, prince charming.”

***

The next evening at the concert, Kurt was a bundle of nerves. He was excited, yes, to meet Cooper and Blaine’s mom, whom he’d learned was named Bella, but he was also scared out of his mind. He’d gotten a text confirmation from his mother that she was coming, too, and bringing her soulmate--yes, she’d confirmed they were official--Kai, too. So, while he was excited to see his mother, he was also nervous about that, too, wondering what she would think of his man and the tiny little heart on his wrist that was growing darker by the day.

“Hey,” Blaine greeted him, coming up beside him as they waited for their cue to go on. “You feeling okay? You’re looking pretty pale, and you’re sweating.”

“Has anyone ever literally died on stage?” Kurt asked, turning to look at his charismatic and confident man. “I think I might be the first if not. Because my stomach is in serious knots right now.”

“About playing the show?” Blaine asked.

“No. About meeting everyone afterward. Even the thought of my mom coming backstage is making me get butterflies.”

“Kurt, everything is going to be fine. I promise,” Blaine assured him, wrapping him up in a hug and pressing a kiss to his cheek. “If anyone dares to say something mean to you, they’ll have me to deal with. And, I may be short, but I can beat them up.” He smiled wide, succeeding in getting a giggle out of Kurt.

“Thanks, but I don’t think there will be any need for beating anyone up,” Kurt reassured him. “It’s more the tripping-over-my-words-and-looking-like-an-idiot thing that I’m worried about.”

“I think it’s adorable,” Blaine reassured him. “I think  _ you’re _ adorable. You’ll be fine.” He gave him a quick, reassuring smile. “Come on. Let’s go.”

“If you say so,” Kurt said, giving his man a quick kiss to the cheek as the stagehand beckoned them on, and they began their set.

***

After the show, as they were tearing everything down and putting their instruments away, Blaine came running up to Kurt, sliding to a stop in front of him and grinning at him widely. “Hi,” he said. “Guess what.”

At those words, Kurt’s stomach tightened. “What?”

“Our moms are here, and they’re already chatting. It looks like they’re getting along well.” He stepped to Kurt’s side, wrapping an arm around his shoulders and pointing in the direction of Kurt’s mom and another woman with long, dark, curly hair, standing beside Mr. Anderson whom Kurt instantly recognized from class. They looked like they were having a good time, and that made Kurt feel only slightly better.

“Should we leave them to get to know one another and sneak away?” Kurt asked, joking. Although, that aside, the idea of just avoiding the meeting  _ was _ making him feel like there were fewer butterflies trying to take flight in his stomach.

“No,” Blaine answered him, giving him a funny look. “I think we should go over there right now and say ‘hi.’ The quicker we get over there, the quicker it will be over.” He winked at Kurt, grabbing his hand and beginning to tug him in the direction of their moms.

“Wait!” Kurt hissed, pulling back. “Wait! Get back over here and explain why you just winked at me!” Was he stalling? He didn’t know, but Blaine had never winked at him before. It had to mean something.

“Um…” Blaine answered, not pulling on him any longer. “Um… No reason…”

“Uh-huh,” Kurt answered dryly, a hand on his hip. “Do you expect me to believe that, Blaine Anderson?”

For some reason, that tone sent a shot of hormones through Blaine’s body, his blood rushing south all at once to the wrong place. His cheeks, somehow, had enough blood leftover in them to color, too, and he ducked his head, muttering, “No,” and looking up at Kurt from beneath his lashes.

_ Oh, my God. He needs to stop doing that, or I am going to have to excuse myself to the bathroom and get myself under control _ , Kurt thought to himself, doing his best to convince his body that it did  _ not _ need to react to that beautiful picture that Blaine made. He put on his best stern voice and said, “I didn’t think so. Explain yourself.”

“Um… I just… Wanted to get back to the hotel with you for some… fun…”

Now, Kurt’s body really wasn’t listening. “Some fun?” he questioned, raising an eyebrow.

“Yes. Some fun. Just...fun,” Blaine answered, resisting the urge to add a few other things to his statement.

“Well, I suppose that some ‘fun’ does make a rather compelling argument,” Kurt relented. He wanted to ask a few more questions about just what the word “fun” meant to Blaine, but he was pretty sure he had a good idea of what he meant. And, truth be told, he’d been thinking about it, too, wondering if it was too early in their blossoming relationship to want to be physically intimate with Blaine, something he’d never done with another man before. That wasn’t the time or place to ask, though. So, he decided to let it go. For now. “But we can’t just go rushing off to meet our moms. We have things to do first.”

“Like what?” Blaine’s tone was little more than air, and damn was his dick hard in his pants.

“Like…” Kurt glanced around desperately for something they could do that would get his mind off of Blaine, that face he’d made, and the things it was doing to him, the things he might want to do later. “Like stack all these chairs,” he said, hoping Blaine would just go along with it to help him get by. He had done a decent job of keeping his eyes averted this entire time, and he wondered if Blaine was feeling as on-edge as he was.

“It would be rude to leave without stacking up those chairs, wouldn’t it?” Blaine agreed, moving past Kurt to begin the task. He was thankful that he’d picked out something for them to do that would require a bit of movement to help themselves get less...excited, assuming Kurt was feeling the same way, of course.  _ I’ve got to remember to say something to him about it later, _ he told himself, making a mental note.

By the time all the chairs were stacked up and they’d gotten a few strange looks from the stage crew whose job they were currently taking over, they met up again, standing shoulder to shoulder and watching their moms interact for a few more seconds. Moving chairs had sent their blood rushing to more appropriate areas, and they were feeling better and far more presentable now.

“Ready to go over there?” Blaine asked, reaching between them to grab Kurt’s hand and squeeze it firmly in his own.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” Kurt replied softly. 

“I promise I’ve got you,” Blaine reassured before leading them over.

Cooper was the first one to notice them. “Hey, squirt! Great show tonight,” he complimented. Then, he cocked his head to the side, looking at Kurt with a funny expression. “Don’t I know you from somewhere? I swear you seem familiar…”

“Uh, yeah. I was in your music appreciation class,” Kurt told him. “At Dalton. A-a few years ago.”

“That’s it!” Cooper exclaimed. “You were the kid that walked in and just stared at the picture of my brother on the wall for several minutes with your mouth hanging open!”

“I wasn’t the only one!” Kurt protested, his cheeks blushing furiously. “And, in my defense, that picture is huge!” Everyone chuckled at that, and Kurt glanced at Blaine, hoping he’d take the lead on the introductions. Things were starting off on a...weird...foot.

“Kurt, this is my older brother, Coop. Who is  _ not _ supposed to call me  _ ‘squirt.’ _ ” He said the last part through clenched teeth, cringing when Cooper socked him lightly on the arm.

“Oh, come on, squirt. You like it.”

Blaine didn’t reply, sticking his tongue out at him before turning to his mother. He smiled at her, reaching out a hand in her direction to pull her into a quick side hug. “Kurt, this is my mom, Bella.”

“Nice to meet you,” Kurt said softly, nodding at her. He had to let go of Blaine’s hand, however, when Bella leaned forward, wrapping Kurt in a tight hug.

“It’s so nice to meet you,” she whispered into his ear.

“You, too,” he answered. When they let go, he turned to his own mother, pulling her into a hug, too. “Mom, this is Blaine. Blaine, my mother, Elizabeth.”

“Nice to meet you, dear,” Elizabeth said sweetly, giving Blaine a quick hug. Then, she turned to look at Kurt. “I was just speaking with Bella. I had no idea she and her sons lived only about an hour from us this whole time.”

“We were really close,” Blaine agreed. “If I’d known how close Kurt was, I would have tried to find him earlier. You really raised an amazing son.” He smiled, taking his man’s hand back into his own again.

“Thank you, but it wasn’t all me. His father did a lot for him, too. And, it wouldn’t have worked if you’d tried to find him sooner,” Elizabeth reminded them. “The two of you are soulmates, and your marks dictated that you would meet in New York.”

“Mom,” Kurt hissed. “How did you know? We weren’t, um… We weren’t necessarily showing those off. Or telling anyone.”

“Honey, what was I supposed to think? The two of you walked over here hand in hand, and you wear your heart on your sleeve. I could see it in the way you look at each other.”

Kurt blushed but nodded, accepting what she’d said. He supposed they had been a little obvious. “Where’s Kai?” he asked, looking around them for the man. “You said he was coming.”

“He did, and he wanted to meet the two of you. But crowds give him a lot of anxiety. He wanted to catch an Uber back to our hotel, and he was hoping the two of you could stop by our room before we leave for home tomorrow.”

“Maybe we could all go out for brunch?” Bella suggested. “It would be nice to have a quieter place to get to know one another. I’d suggest dinner, but I’m sure everywhere is closed.”

“We could do brunch,” Blaine replied, looking at Kurt for confirmation. When the other man shrugged, he went on. “Our next show is in Kansas City, but we don’t have to be there until later in the day because we don’t have a show tomorrow. So, we could do brunch if you’re up for it, Elizabeth?”

“I think Kai and I would enjoy that a lot,” Elizabeth confirmed. Then, she turned to Cooper. “So, do you teach at Dalton Academy? You were one of my son’s professors?”

“I was,” Cooper agreed, grinning. “I can share more about it tomorrow, but it was so funny to see him take in the awesomeness that is my little brother for the first time. If I’d known they were soulmates, I would have given him Blaine’s number right away.”

“Fate decides that,” Elizabeth said softly. “No matter what we want or think would be ideal, Fate determines when and how each couple meets. They have nothing they can do to prevent it.”

“You seem to know a lot about soulmates,” Bella said. “Have you found yours before?”

Elizabeth’s brow wrinkled. “I have. My first soulmate, Kurt’s father, passed away when Kurt was still a very young man, and I just recently met my second soulmate, Kai.”

“That’s sad,” Bella empathized, glancing at Kurt. “I’m sure losing your father was hard on you. I’m sorry you had to go through that.”

“It was,” Kurt confirmed. “But I’m okay now. I still miss him every day, but I know he’d be happy to see what I’m doing with my life and that I’ve met my soulmate.”

“He absolutely would, my dear,” Elizabeth confirmed.

Kurt was about to say something else when Blaine let out a loud yawn beside him. A yawn that was just a little too long and a little too loud to be completely convincing.

“I am beat,” Blaine said, giving the gathered group an apologetic smile. “It’s been a long day, and I would like to head back to the hotel and get some sleep. We’ll meet all of you tomorrow for brunch? Would you be okay with meeting at RH Rooftop, my treat?”

“RH Rooftop is so expensive,” Elizabeth fretted. “I don’t know if--”

“My treat. I’d really like to,” Blaine cut in before she could protest further. “They have amazing food, and it would be a great place to relax and chat before we take off for our own lives again.”

“They really do have amazing food,” Bella said. “Totally worth the price point.”

“Fine,” Elizabeth agreed, but Kurt could tell that she wasn’t totally convinced. “RH Rooftop it is. What time?”

"10:30," Blaine offered. "Or is that too late? We could meet at 10 instead."

"No. 10:30 is better," Elizabeth said, looking around the rest of the group. "Kai will need some time to get ready to go out in public. He always has a headache in the morning after he's been in a crowd for too long." Glancing at the small watch on her wrist, she gasped. "Oh, I should be going. Kai will be wondering where I am. I'll see you all at brunch!" She reached out an arm to Kurt, pulling him into a quick hug. She pressed a quick kiss to his cheek and whispered, "I love you. Great job tonight," in his ear before pulling away and smiling at him again. "I'll see all of you tomorrow." Then, she turned and left.

"We'd like to get going, too," Blaine commented again. "Mom? Coop? Do you guys have a ride back to your hotel? I could have the driver give you a lift."

"Oh, no. You don't need to do that. We'll just grab a Lyft or an Uber back. It's fine." She smiled, tugging at Cooper's arm lightly. "Come on, honey. Let's go back to the hotel and let these boys get to bed."

"Night," Blaine said, giving each of them a quick, half-second hug. "We'll see you tomorrow."

Then, with that, they were alone again.

"Where's everyone else?" Blaine wondered, looking around. "Do you know where the other guys went?"

"Back to the hotel, I think," Kurt answered. "I heard Jeff and Seb say something about being tired and wanting to get to bed."

"Oh, I agree. Although…” He wiggled his eyebrows at Kurt. “I was thinking there was something I’d like to do besides sleep. The ‘fun’ I mentioned earlier, if you remember.”

Kurt blushed, and he could feel the blood rushing to his groin despite how embarrassed he was by Blaine’s implication. Yes, he’d been thinking about it, but now that they were alone and Blaine was really flirting with him, Kurt was struck by just how little experience he had in that area… And, how badly he wanted to be with Blaine in that way.

“Of course, as long as that’s okay with you,” Blaine added, reading Kurt’s hesitation easily.

“Ca-can we talk about it when we get back to-to our room?” Kurt asked him, stuttering out his request. “I-I don’t want to… I mean, n-not here…”

“Of course,” Blaine replied, pressing a quick kiss to his cheek. “Let’s go outside and find the car so we can get back to our room.”

Kurt nodded, following him stoically. As they piled into the car to head back to their hotel, he thought about what he wanted, if he was ready for this next step with Blaine. Something was telling him that, yes, he was ready. After all the amazing skin-to-skin contact they’d been sharing, all the sizzling and electric feelings they’d felt zinging between them, he was ready for more.  _ But what does more mean exactly? _ He didn’t have to wait long to find out.

When they got back to their room, the first thing Blane did once the door was shut behind them was press Kurt up against it, his strong arms supporting his body on either side of Kurt’s shoulders as he claimed his lips in a soft kiss. “You were amazing tonight,” he breathed against Kurt’s mouth, his warm breath ghosting lightly across Kurt’s blushed cheeks and closed eyelids. “And, I want to say thank you for how amazing you were. Both on stage and after.” Then, his mouth was covering Kurt’s again, delving deeply, dancing and exploring as their kiss grew more heated. 

Kurt found his hands beginning to wander the longer they kissed, his fingers beginning to pull at the hem of Blaine’s shirt, diving down to swipe just above Blaine’s waistband, and then up to gently touch his abs. He worked his way around from Blaine’s back to his stomach, smiling when his fingertips found the gentle groove that naturally guided his hands down to a much more erogenous zone. “Need this off,” he begged when Blaine pulled back just a bit to give them both a moment to breathe. “Need to feel your skin.” He tugged at the bottom of his shirt insistently.

Quicker than Kurt could process what was happening, Blaine’s shirt was in a puddle on the floor, and he was guiding Kurt’s own shirt up his torso. “May I?” he asked, glancing up at Kurt through his lashes.

All Kurt could do was nod.

When Blaine pressed up against him again, his warm skin rested against Kurt's, immediately sending a shiver down the other man’s spine again. "Is this okay?" Blaine asked, his eyes half-lidded as he stared at Kurt's mouth. He really wanted to kiss him again, but he could sense a bit of hesitation still coming from the other man. He wanted their first sexual experience together to be good for both of them, not just him. This was his soulmate, after all, and Kurt deserved the best parts of him, not just the hormonal parts that thought that Kurt was incredibly hott.

"I love this part," Kurt confirmed. "I love the feeling of your body against my body. It's just..."

"Tell me, please. I want...I want this to be good for you, too."

"I just haven't ever had anyone to be intimate with," Kurt explained. "I-I wasn't really completely out of the closet in high school, and in college, no one paid much attention to me. A-and now, I mean, I just met you a few days ago, and..." He swallowed. “I’m a virgin, Blaine, and this is all new for me.”

Blaine was surprised that Kurt’s admission didn’t shock him more. Somehow, he supposed, he’d already sort of known that he was new to all of this. So, he took it in stride, doing his best to make Kurt feel comfortable. "We don't have to do anything you're not ready for. We didn't really talk about it or what we wanted, so if you need more time, I'm--"

"No. I-I mean, no. We-we didn't talk about it, but I don't want to-to not do anything. Just... Will you lead the way, at least until I get comfortable?"

"Anything you need," Blaine answered. "Now, I-I really want to kiss you again. May I?"

"Yeah... I'd like that."

Their lips met again in another kiss, and despite starting out far more tender than it had when they'd first walked into their hotel room, it didn't stay that way. It grew heated quickly, and they were soon fumbling their way to the bed as they continued to try to kiss and also remove their pants to ease some of the pressure on their erections.

Blaine was the first out of his, and he collapsed onto the bed in nothing but his boxers, panting hard, watching Kurt with blown pupils. "What do you think you're ready for?" he managed to ask.

"Maybe just... um... Maybe you could just... use your mouth?"

"Are you asking me for a blow job?"

Kurt nodded, not able to make the words come out of his mouth. He felt he should be embarrassed, but he tried to ignore it. They could handle his shy tendencies later. Right now, he just wanted to feel Blaine's warm, firm body pressed against his again because he'd never felt anything like it and couldn't imagine anything more wonderful and heavenly. Well, except for maybe the heat of his warm mouth around his cock.

Blaine nodded before lifting one hand to beckon Kurt over. "Come here, then. I want to kiss that perfect body of yours."

Blushing hard, Kurt crawled up the bed, laying down beside Blaine and rolling onto his side so he could look at him. He could feel his heart beating wildly in his chest, and something told him that if Blaine would just hold him again, everything would be right in his world. He would feel whole and calm once more. Maybe it was the soulmate connection; maybe it was the desire to know the man he was set to spend the rest of his life with in a more intimate way. Regardless, Kurt wanted Blaine closer, and he placed a hand on his chest tenderly. "How do we do this?" he whispered, his eyes wandering lustily across the other man's bare skin. Despite his nerves, he couldn’t deny how much he wanted Blaine’s perfect form.

"I think," Blaine replied, rolling onto his side to face Kurt, resting his head on his hand, "that we should let it happen, whatever it's going to be, naturally. Maybe we just go back to kissing and leave the rest up to Fate. If tonight is supposed to lead to more, then more will happen."

Kurt smiled, wordlessly leaning in and claiming Blaine's lips with his own, this time taking the lead on pressing their mouths together, his tongue darting out to trace the crease of Blaine's mouth, his lips sucking Blaine's upper lip between his teeth, loving the feel of kissing him once again.

Blaine replied in kind, wrapping his arms around Kurt's torso and pulling him closer until their bodies were pressed together from the waist down, their legs tangling together, their erections rubbing roughly together from inside their underwear.

It didn't take long until both of them were feeling as turned on as they had been before, panting and ready for more. Blaine had been running his hands over Kurt's skin, exploring each and every curve and bulge of muscle, and they came to a stop at the waistband of Kurt's underwear, pausing as the other boy met his eyes, a question clearly evident in them. He didn't say anything, but he continued to watch, hoping Kurt would pick up on his meaning and wanting to read for himself how the other boy was feeling about going further.

Nodding, Kurt watched Blaine's face as he felt fingertips hooking into his waistband and slowly drawing his underwear down. If he was being honest, the friction felt amazing on his cock, sending him closer to the orgasm his body had been chasing ever since they got back to their room. He felt a little moan rising in the back of his throat, and he couldn't bite it back, his cheeks coloring slightly as the sound came out.

"That was beautiful," Blaine whispered in his ear, his tone full of reverence for the amazing and wonderful creature that was the man laid out in front of him.

"I-I--" He wanted to protest, but he didn't want to hide anything from Blaine. He deserved to know him, who he was in all of his headspaces, especially the one he was currently in, nervous yet eagerly anticipating what was coming next. It wasn't as if this was the only time Blaine was going to see him needy and wanting. At least, he hoped not.

"You are wonderful, Kurt. You don't have to be embarrassed by any sounds you make or anything you do when we're intimate," Blaine promised, smiling at him as he let Kurt's underwear slip from his fingers onto the floor beside the bed. He turned his gaze to take in the perfect sight before him, Kurt's red, dripping, straining cock bobbing before him, just waiting to be touched and worshiped. "Are you ready?" he asked softly, wanting to be sure that Kurt had gotten used to being naked in front of him before they moved on to the next part of their evening.

Once again, Kurt could do nothing but nod.

Lovingly, Blaine began to place kisses down Kurt's chest, starting at the dip between his pecs and leaving a trail down to his navel. From there, he placed a line of kisses across the place where the band of his underwear had rested upon his hips. When he once again had Kurt moaning softly, his hips wriggling beneath his lips with every press of them against his skin, he stopped, looking up to watch Kurt's face for a moment. Then, without saying another word, he moved down to Kurt's cock and sunk down on it, taking it about halfway down before pulling back and off in one smooth motion.

"Ohhhhhh," Kurt stuttered, his breath catching as his brain tried to wrap itself around the fact that Blaine had just had his mouth around his cock. A million questions flitted through his mind, a hundred things they probably should have talked about before they started doing this. Somehow, though, these questions and thoughts didn't seem too important, because they vanished almost as quickly as they flashed through, and Kurt fell back into just experiencing his first sexual encounter with the man that was his forever.

Blaine knew what he could do with his mouth. Unlike this wonderful man in front of him, he  _ had _ been with other people before, and he knew how they generally responded to his mouth. This time was special, though, the beginning of the rest of his life with the man Fate had chosen for him, and he wanted to make Kurt's experience, his very first experience with anyone but especially with him, the most wonderful thing he'd ever experienced in his life. So, with that in mind, he placed a few kisses around Kurt's cock, pressing his lips to the tip, down the vein on the underside, and around the base before moving back up, following the same path as before. When he reached the tip again, he sank down on Kurt's cock once more, this time taking in the whole thing.

Unable to control his hips, Kurt pushed up a bit into Blaine's mouth. "Ohhh fuuuck..."

Pressing down on Kurt's hips to keep them pinned to the bed, Blaine continued, bobbing up and down over and over, occasionally using his tongue to add to the feeling, sometimes humming to send tremors through Kurt's body to his balls. He knew Kurt wouldn't last long, not for his first blow job, but he wanted it to be the best one yet.

Kurt could feel his orgasm coming as his balls began to tighten, his belly feeling as though a fire was being raised in it, the heat of Blaine's mouth and the vibrations of him humming around his cock the last things he registered before he knew it was inevitable. "Blaine, I--" He tried, unable to get out anything as he felt the tip of Blaine's tongue drag across his head, sliding lightly through his slit. Then, he felt Blaine's hand squeeze his hip, and he was cumming down his throat, his body thrumming with pleasure and his mouth making sounds he couldn't even understand, would normally never allow to leave his chest.

Once he was sure Kurt was done, Blaine pulled off with one last lick up Kurt's softening cock, coming to lay down beside the other man's spent body and tracing a finger around one of his nipples as he waited for Kurt to regain enough strength to open his eyes and look at him again.

"Thank you," were the first words out of Kurt's mouth.

Blaine smiled. "For what?"

"For that. It was...amazing. Wonderful. Better than I'd ever dreamed it could be, my first time with-with someone else..."

"You're welcome," Blaine replied, leaning in to press another quick kiss to Kurt's lips.

"Do-do you want me to--"

Blaine was already shaking his head. "You don't need to," he replied, ignoring the way his cock was screaming at him that he really did want release. "I want you to be comfortable, and giving you a wonderful orgasm is enough for me."

"I-I want to--" Kurt couldn't get it all out, his cheeks coloring again, the blush sinking down his neck and into his chest and shoulders. "I want..."

"You want what?" Blaine whispered, ghosting his lips across Kurt's cheek.

"I want to touch..."

"You can do that," Blaine promised. "You don't have to use your mouth. Only do what makes you feel comfortable."

Kurt nodded, sitting up and stretching his long body for a moment before making eye contact with Blaine. His eyes flicked down to Blaine's crotch and back up, a question on his lips.

Blaine just nodded, not waiting for the other man to ask. "You can."

As gently as he could, Kurt pulled down Blaine's underwear, revealing his perfect body beneath. As he let the underwear fall from his fingertips to the ground, he heard himself gasp as he just looked. He wasn't sure exactly what he'd expected to see, but what he saw was definitely beautiful, just like the rest of Blaine's slender, compact body. His cock was bowing toward his stomach, flushed and begging to be touched, for release. He wanted to reach out and touch it, to take it into his hand and feel the weight of it in his grasp, to see if it compared to what he'd always imagined another man's cock would feel like. But he was nervous, and as he reached out a hand, his fingertips trembled.

"Take your time," Blaine told him, watching him closely. "If you're not comfortable, you don't have to. I--"

In response, Kurt tentatively traced a fingertip down Blaine's cock, smiling as Blaine shivered, his eyes slipping closed. Feeling more confident, Kurt wrapped his whole hand around Blaine's shaft, loving the way he felt in his hand: hot, heavy, and straining. Giving him an experimental pump, Kurt thought to himself,  _ I can do this. I can make him feel as good as he made me feel. _

So, he started off slow, keeping up a steady pace as he got a feel for what he was doing, getting used to the way Blaine's cock felt, how he liked to be touched, what made those tiny whimpers escape his lips. Blaine only had to guide him a few times, reminding him to slow down or be a little more gentle. Overall, however, Kurt did it all on his own, and he could tell that when Blaine began to grab fistfuls of the sheet beside him with white knuckles, his hips lifting off the mattress in their own desperate dance, that he was close. So, Kurt pumped faster.

"Oh, oh, oh!" Blaine chanted, his hips lifting higher this time as his stomach muscles flexed and his balls tightened. "Kuuuuurt." A moment later, he was painting his stomach and Kurt's hand with his cum.

Kurt slowed down, but he didn't stop until Blaine began to whimper just a bit.

"Too much," he whined. He relaxed when his spent cock was released, waiting for Kurt to come and lay beside him as he’d done during Kurt’s post-orgasmic bliss. Then, however, he felt a dip, and the bed next to him was empty. Opening his eyes, Blaine watched as Kurt's perfect ass disappeared into the bathroom. He emerged a few moments later with a damp cloth, coming over and handing it to Blaine. "Thanks."

Nodding, Kurt perched on the edge of the bed, his hands twisting in his lap. He stared at them, not looking at Blaine.

When he'd finished cleaning himself up, he leaned up on his elbow, reaching out to tug on Kurt's arm. "Come here," he implored quietly.

Silently, Kurt laid down on the bed beside him, covering his hips with the sheet and turning large, questioning eyes toward him.

"You did amazing," Blaine whispered, bending to kiss his lips. "That felt wonderful."

"Really?"

"Really. You have no idea how much I've been wanting to do that since the moment I laid eyes on you this morning," Blaine replied. "There's something about being your man that really just does something to me, something about today that made me want more with you than what we’d had."

Kurt giggled at that. "I've been thinking about it all day, too," he admitted. "I just wasn't sure I was ready."

"Well, I thought you were perfect," Blaine answered, snuggling closer, a huge yawn escaping him. "Are you ready to sleep now? I'm exhausted."

"I could sleep," Kurt agreed, bringing a hand up to pet at Blaine's hair. When he felt Blaine beginning to hum contentedly against his shoulder, like a cat purring at a good snuggle, he smiled, stretching out one of his long arms to flip off the lamp that he couldn't remember ever turning on. "Good night," he whispered, kissing the top of Blaine's head and getting comfy against his pillows.

"Night," Blaine whispered against him, kissing his shoulder. A few moments later, he was snoring softly.


End file.
